LlBPulRY OF CONGRESS. 






I UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. ? 



MADISOJST: 



ITS 



ORIGIN, INSTITUTIONS AND ATTRACTIONS.- 



PERSONS. PLACES AND EVENTS GKAPHICALLT DELINEATED. 



A RELIABLE GUIDE-BOOK FOR TOURISTS. 



ILL USTRA TED. 



BY C. E. JONES, 



n uo 



s^-^ 



MADISON, WIS.: 
WM. J. PARK & CO., PUBLISHERS. 

BOOKBINDERS, BOOKSELLERS, STATIONERS, ETC. 

1876. 
It 



f5%'] 



^7 



COPYEIGHT. 
WM. J. PAKK t CO. 

1676 



AT WOOD A CTJLVER, 

Stereotypers and Printers^ 

MADISOK, WIS. 



INTRODUCTOKT. 



Reminiscences, of the troubles, perils and pleasures, tlirough 
which men have passed, are always interesting unless the nan-ator 
descends to the enumeration of prosy details. Given the chief in- 
cidents attendant upon the arrival of the first family in Madison, 
and it is unnecessary to repeat the same facts as they occurred in 
the experience of subsequent pioneers. Wearisome and unpleas- 
ant particulars will always be avoided by the writer who aims at 
popular favor, if his judgment has been improved by the lessons of 
the past. 

Pioneer life in Wisconsin, including the days in which this terri- 
tory was part of Michigan, or of Inchana, and glancing back 
beyond the times of Captain Carver to the first coming of Jesuits 
and voyageurs to Green Bay, affords scope enough for the prepara- 
tion of a very interestmg volume, such as the reader may peruse 
upon the cars, or while away an hour withal, when the more serious 
affairs of the current season have necessitated change and rest. It 
is hoped that some such work is now offered to compete for the 
favor of the public. 

Not war alone, but incidents of peace have been treated. Charles 
Reaume, the Green Bay justice, could not be omitted from our pio- 
neer records, but it would have been tiresome to recapitulate the 
hundred stories which are reiterated with painful sameness as to his 
eccentricities. 

Tliere is a pathetic interest attaching to schoolmaster WiUiam- 
Bon's six pupils on Dayton street, and to the twenty students with 
whom Professor Sterling began the preparatory work of the Uni- 
versity, which culminates in a feeling of profound thankfulness, 
when we contemplate the scholastic advantages of to-day. 



6 • HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Our book might have been a mere guide to the exquisite spots 
and general charms of scenery, but we have preferred a general 
statement in that respect, as well as in many others. We have 
glanced at most of the prominent features in our territorial, muni- 
cipal and state career, without attempting the dry detail of liistory. 
Have noted the growth of bench and bar, the development of our 
mercantile estabhsbments, the growth of the banldng interest, the 
beauty of the homes that add a pleasure even to the contemplation 
of our lakes. The mounds, caves and antiquities of the aboriginal 
people have been recorded, and side by side therewith the better tu- 
muh of Hterature, erected by the guild of letters in our own time, 
but above aU tilings there has been an effort to avoid tediousness, in 
which pm'suit we abandon the further drawing out of our preface. 

Madison, Wis., 1876. 



CONTENTS. 



Cfi. I. In the Beginning, - . - - 9 

II. Locating the Capital, - - - 20 

III. Pioneers and Celebrities, - - - 39 

IV. State University, . - - - 65 
V. State Historical Society, - - - 81 

VI. Bench and Bar, - - - - 98 

VII. Churches and Pastors, - - - 119 

VIII. Newspaper History, - - - 131 

IX. Merchants and Bankers, - - . 147 

X. Schools, Literature and Art, - - 173 

XL Madison Homes, - - - - 194 

XII. Visitors and Their Pleasures, - - 199 

XIII. Mounds, Monuments, Caves and Relics, - 207 



INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Frontispiece— View op City, - - Facing Title 


Lake Monona, or Third Lake, . - - 




30 


First House in Madison, - - - 


- 


43 


State University, - - - - - 




73 


Congregational Church, - - - 


- 


128 


Wisconsin State Journal Block, - 




135 


D. K. Tenney, Esq., .... 


- 


137 


View of King Street, - - - - 




146 


View OF Farwell Mill, - - - - 


- 


151 


View of Lake Side, - - - - 




154 


City Hall and Post Office — Lake Mendota in the 




Background, . - - - - 


- 


169 


Madison City High School, - - - - 




178 


RosEBANK Cottage, - - - . 


. 


193 


Madison Yacht, - - - - _ 




198 


Angle- Worm Station, - . - - 


. 


201 


Pre- Historic Collections— 






Marietta, ------ 




205 


Knives, Awls and Bracelets, - - - 


- 


213 


Porphyry and Greenstone, - - - - 




216 


Drinking Cup, - - . - - 


- 


217 


Sepulchral Urns, - - - . 




219 



HISTOEY OF MADISOK 



CHAPTER I. 

IN THE BEGINNING. 

Soon after Pere Marquette made his way to the 
Mississij^pi, from the Lakes, this IVestern country 
was overrun by Canadian French voijageurs^ whose 
.country, language and religion, were considerable aids 
to trade among the tribes of Indians, recently gath- 
ered into the fold of the Catholic church. There is 
no positive evidence that they were on this identical 
spot, but a probability, all but overwhelming, suggests 
their presence in the Lake country, because the In- 
dians were here, and, moreover, because the conform- 
ation of the country, the large and beautiful lakes, 
and other well known features, specially adapted this 
particular locality for the supply of peltry. There 
was a mission house at or near Green Bay before 
Marquette's world-famous canoe voyage by the Fox 
and Wisconsin rivers; but there is no mention by 
which our topography is identified until more than a 
century later, in the records of Capt. Carver, as pub- 
lished after 1768. His " Travels through the interior 



10 HISTOET OF MADISON. 

parts of jN^orth America " make unmistakable refer- 
ences to the Blue Mounds, wliicli lie knew, j)robably 
from the Indians, were snj^posed to be rich in lead. 
The captain shrewdly suspected the trappers of hav- 
ing purposely misrepresented the territory for their 
better security as to ulterior designs of their own. 
The Jesuit maps of the Lake Superior country, pre- 
pared a century earlier in Paris, were very good, con- 
sidering the limited facilities of the priests by whom 
the information was supplied, but the operations of 
the Canadian voyageurs, jealously defending their 
trading privileges after their old home had passed 
under the rule of strangers, would be subject to very 
different rules. 

The Sacs and Foxes held this territory from time 
immemorial, so far as we have any positive knowl- 
edge, until the year 1825, when the Nations sold their 
rights to all lands east of the Mississij^pi. Unfortu- 
nately, for the red men, they were persuaded by 
some of their leaders to play fast and loose with their 
treaty, and after the first removal, there were almost 
continuous returns, and on many occasions marauding 
l^arties inflicted damage on property and life by w^ay 
of asserting a right to their old hunting grounds. 
In the year 1831 things had become unendurable, and 
it was found necessary to drive the Indians back 
acrc»ss the newdy agreed upon barrier, the Mississippi. 
The Winnebago outbreak and the Black Hawk w^ar, 
the first named in 1831-2, and the latter concurrent 
with or immediately following, were parts of the same 



IN THE BEGINNING. 11 

sclieme of aggression, intended to recover for the 
tribes the lands already sold and delivered by their 
chiefs and themselves. Eventually the Indians were 
repressed and forced back with a firm hand. 

The first attempt at settlement in this county was 
made in 1827-8, by Col. Ebenezer Brigham, who died 
in this city at the advanced age of seventy-two, in the 
year 1861. He visited Wisconsin in 1822, but it was 
not until -&ve years later that he came hither to make a 
permanent abode. The lead mines were the chief at- 
traction, but after a brief sojourn at Platte river, on 
what is known as the Block House branch, he and his 
party retired to Galena, not being strong enough to 
hold their own in a country possessed by hostile In- 
dians. Early in 1828, Col. Brigham and his asso- 
ciates took up a position in the Blue Mounds, still 
mining for lead. Food supplies, at first procured 
from' Galena, were afterwards obtained from Fort 
Winnebago, and it was while returning from Fort 
Winnebago that the beauties of the Lake country 
were first discovered by Col. Brigham. The Indians 
had told him about the lakes, but the beautiful real- 
ity vastly exceeded their description. The pioneer is 
not always capable of appreciating the picturesque, 
but the colonel predicted the greatness of the village 
that would be built where Madison now stands, being 
impressed by the charms of the scene, and he even 
assumed that the capital of the Territory and State 
would be here located. 

The first comers to this county were widely severed 



12 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

from their nearest friends. Dodgeville was the resi- 
dence of their next door neighbor, and to the south- 
east they conld call upon somewhat distant acquaint- 
ances on the O'Plaine river, hardly twelve miles from 
Chicago. Col. Juneau was located near the junction 
of the Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers, laying the 
foundations of the beautiful Cream City, which is 
now the commercial metropolis of Wisconsin. It 
will be seen at once that every settlement in those 
days had to rely mainly upon its own means of de- 
fense against the Indians, who were established in 
populous villages in every direction. As a rule there 
was a good understanding, and from time to time 
treaties were made defining the boundaries of the 
new comers, but the stipulations of the natives were 
extended and broken repeatedly. So slowly did the 
people migrate hitherwards, that Col. Brigham was 
still the nearest settler when the capital was located, 
and his residence was distant twenty-five miles. 
Gov. Lewis Cass, the chief executive of Michigan 
Territory, had jurisdiction from the earliest set- 
tlement, and he made Col. Brigham the first justice 
ever appointed here, but his office was almost a sine- 
cure during the four years that he retained the honor. 
The difficulties under which these hardy miners 
opened up their lucrative calling cannot readily be 
made to appear to the modern reader. The traveler 
of to-day is transported in a few hours from Madison to 
Chicago, can dispatch the business of the day in the 
metropolis of the northwest and return, without a 



IN THE BEGINNING. 13 

sense of fatigue or a stain of travel, to liis home at 
niglit, but there was no such hixurj possible to the 
adventurous colonel and his companions who sent 
their product to Green Bay, Galena or Chicago, and 
who had not a wagon track to guide them toward the 
village which has now expanded to the colossal pro- 
portions of Chicago. That mighty Babylon was then 
an insignificant village, in which there seemed to be 
no probability that the people would master the diffi- 
culties incident to the position and render it habita- 
ble in the better sense. The old colonel was natu- 
rally and fitly included in the earliest attempts to or- 
ganize a government in this territory, when the sev- 
erance from Michigan was effected in 1836, and for 
very many years he was identified with the succeed- 
ing forms of administration. 

A trip from Green Bay to Prairie du Chien, on 
horseback, was undertaken for the first time in May, 
1829, by Judge Doty, afterwards Governor, and two 
attorneys of the first named settlement, Henry S. 
Baird and Morgan L. Martin, guided by a Menomo- 
nee Indian whose acquaintance with the country was 
by no means perfect; but their seven days pilgrimage 
made them conversant with the topographical features 
of Lake Winnebago, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, our 
own Four Lakes, the site of our city, the Blue Mounds 
and Dodgeville, besides the vast range of country in- 
cluded in their interesting detour. There had been 
many transits by the Fox and Wisconsin to the Miss- 
issippi, since the days of Pere Marquette and his voy- 



14 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

ageurs, but this, so far as can be known, was tlie "first 
journey made by white men overland. Three years 
later Judge Doty again visited this spot, having been 
much impressed by its beauty, and being desirous to 
see a town started in the midst of so much natural 
grandeur. 

The ambitious designs of Black Hawk, who had 
obtained an ascendency over the braves of his own 
and of neighboring tribes, led to a disastrous war 
w^itli the Indians in 1832, as already indicated, and 
the settlers of this portion of Wisconsin were not 
backward during that eventful period. There was an 
actual alliance between the deceitful Winnebagoes 
and the more immediate followers of Black Hawk, 
the Sacs and Foxes, some time before hostilities were 
openly commenced ; but the savages were full of pro- 
testations as to their peaceful and friendly disposition. 
Col. Brigham could not be hoodwinked by their flat- 
teries, and he, with the cooperation of his little army 
of industry, built a block house fort, on the prairie, 
near Blue Mounds, as part of their system of defense. 
When hostile demonstrations were anticipated, the 
whole of the settlers near at hand, with their families, 
congregated within the palisade that surrounded the 
main buildings. The Winnebagoes were still per- 
sistent as to their friendship and alliance, until the 
beginning of June, 1832, although there is good rea- 
son for believing that they were supplying informa- 
tion and help to their more warlike neighbors, lone 
before that date. Preparations for war w^ere madg, 



IN THE BEGINNING. 15 

regardless of tlie Winnebago promises, as it was 
well known that Black Hawk's followers would cause 
trouble without much delay. The commanding officer 
at Mound Fort, Caj^t. John Sherman, saw the proba- 
bility of war to be so imminent that he communicated 
his apprehensions to Col. Dodge, afterwards governor, 
and the colonel marched to the reenforcement of Sher- 
man with two hundred men, collected from other and 
less exposed positions in the mining districts. Shortly 
after this timely aid arrived, James Aubrey, the first 
commander at the fort, was killed near the residence 
of Col. Brigham, while .procuring water from a 
spring. The Sac Indians killed him, being guided to 
their ambush by the treacherous Winnebagoes, within 
a few days of the time when they were most lavish 
in expressions of friendship. Their part in the mur- 
der was surmised, bnt not known, at the time of Au- 
brey's death. A second ambush was planned, and 
succeeded on the 20th of the month, fourteen days 
after the death of Aubrey. The savages having made 
their dispositions for the purpose, caused some few of 
their body to reveal themselves to the occupants of 
the fort. Lieut. Force, accomjDanied by a comrade 
named Green, the latter leaving his wife and children 
in the stockade, made a reconnoisance, in the course 
of which they were decoyed by the retiring Indians 
into a trap laid for the destruction of a much larger 
body. Force and Green fought and maneuvered with 
bravery and skill, but they were so completely en- 
meshed that there was no possibility of escape. The 



16 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

savages mutilated tlieir victims in a shameful manner 
after death. The watch worn by Lieut. Force was 
subsequently recovered from the body of a dead In- 
dian, by a trader named Wallis Kowan. The red 
man, overtaken by fatigue, had apparently lain down 
to rest, and in that way was destroyed by a prairie 
fire. Tlie efforts and the deaths of Force and Green 
were seen from Mound Fort. 

1^0 twith standing tliese cruel and purposeless suc- 
cesses, the Indians were pursued by the main body of 
settlers and troops, under the command of Col. Dodge, 
over the Crawfish, near Aztalan, across the site of this 
city, to the north end of Monona, and at Catfish Ford, 
a brisk engagement with the rear guard of the flying 
foe, taught the Indians what they might expect in the 
way of punishment. One Indian was shot sitting 
upon the newly-made grave of his squaw, having 
calmly taken that position apparently with the hope 
that he would thus readily join her in the Happy 
Hunting Grounds. Eventually the Black Hawk war 
was ended by decisive battles, the only kind of argu- 
ment that can be conclusive with savages, and nearly 
the whole of the red skins that had been in arms were 
killed, captured or dispersed. Black Hawk and his 
accomplice, the Prophet, who had buoyed up the tribes 
with delusive promises, were surrendered to General 
Street, at Prairie du Cliien, on the 2Tth of August, 
1832, by the chiefs of their own people, One-Eyed 
Decorra and Cha-E. Tar. The treaty with the Sacs 
and Foxes, made at Kock Island in September of that 



IN THE BEGINNING. 17 

year, happily terminated tlie Indian difficulties of 
Wisconsin. 

Shortly after the Black Hawk war had been crushed 
out, the attractions of this site brought settlers here, 
and on the 15th of October, 1832, an encampment 
was made by Capt. Low, James Ilalpin and Archi- 
bald Crisman, on Mendota Lake ridge. There were 
numerous Indians then located on the city site, hav- 
ing been concentrated here by the facilities offered by 
a French trader, wdiose abode was on the ground now 
crossed by Johnson street. Rowan, the Indian trader 
into whose hands the watch of Lieut. Force fell as 
lawful spoil, had long before taken up his location in 
this neighborhood. Mr. Abel Easdall, a native of 
Kentucky, another early resident, commenced his 
Wisconsin experiences as a lead miner, and thence 
diverging into the avocation of an Indian trader, was 
connected by marriage with a Winnebago woman. 
After her death, he married another of the same tribe, 
but she eventually migrated west with her own peo- 
ple, and her husband was not entirely inconsolable. 
Rasdall had been for a considerable time a prosper- 
ous trader among the Indians before the war com- 
menced, but during the continuance of hostilities 
with Black Hawk, Abel Rasdall was one of the 
readiest and most daring of our volunteers. He con- 
tinued a resident in Dane county until his death at 
Token Creek, in 1837, when he was fifty- two years old. 
After the conclusion of his Indian engagements, Mr. 
Rasdall took to himself a wife of his own race in this 



18 HISTORY OF MADISOI^. 

city, and raised a family as tlie result of that mar- 
riage. He had traded in Dane county, and more 
esj^ecially around the Four Lakes, since the year 
before the Black Hawk war. 

From the time of the first colony planted in Illi- 
nois by La Salle, in 1678-9, the Canadian voyagers 
and colonists had customarily intermarried with the 
Indians with, as a rule, no other result than that the 
more civilized race was absorbed by the other, and 
the result did not exhibit a corresponding increase 
of capacity to appropriate the advantages of civ- 
ilization. Some of the half breeds were sharp and 
dangerous, but few are known as estimable men. 
One of the earliest traders here seems to have been an 
exception to that rule. His name was Michel St. 
Cyr, son of a Canadian Frenchman, by a Winnebago. 
Living always on the frontier and among the Indians, 
he had not participated in the advantages of schools, 
but he bore an excellent character as a man of verac- 
ity, a virtue not always found associated with civili- 
zation, although certainly a part of the highest. St. 
Cyr was one of the traders in the Four Lake country, 
dividing his attention between the traffic by which he 
made money and a small garden, that gave him and 
his Winnebago children a subsistence. His cabin 
served occasionally as a caravanserai, and something 
more, when travelers visited the lakes. Eventually 
St. Cyr sold out his improvements to Col. Slaughter, 
and retired to the Winnebago reservation in Iowa. 
His sons were considered w^orthless, even by the In- 



IN THE BEGINNING. 19 

clians, and that atom of civilization was utterly erased. 
The F. F. y.'s would not trace their lineage to Poca- . 
hontas, if the husband of that lady had been domi- 
ciliated among the tribes, and if the result of that 
marriage had been given over to Indian customs and 
general training. 

Preliminary steps for the survey of the lands in 
this locality were taken by the general government 
in 1834, and before the end of the year, that duty had 
been comj^leted. The survey and plat of this city 
were made under special directions from Judge Doty, 
who had long before that time been impressed by the 
beauty of this site and its surroundings. The fur- 
ther proceedings of the early settlers must be dealt 
with in a future chapter. 



20 HISTOIIY OF MADISON. 



CHAPTEK II. 

LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 

Settlement had made little progress when the ques- 
tion arose, " where shall we fix our capital ? " Suddenly, 
from all parts of the territory, arose the voice of in- 
domitable advocates, and when the first legislature 
was convened at Belmont, there was a display of log- 
rolling such as could hardly be excelled. Judge Doty, 
who had traversed nearly the whole territory on 
horseback or in his canoe, accoutred '' with his green 
blanket and shot gun," might have been trusted to 
make the selection, but for the fact, that he had 
long since decided in his own mind, and had joined 
with Gov. Mason of Michigan, in purchasing the site 
occupied by this city for $1,500. Fond du Lac, 
Dubuque, in Iowa, which was part of our territory, 
Portage, Belmont, Helena, Pacine, Milwaukee, Platte- 
ville. Mineral Point, Cassville, Green Bay, Kosh- 
konong, Belleview, Wisconsinapolis, Wisconsin City 
and Peru, were all advocated with unscrupulous zeal, 
and every one of the rival cities, many of which, like 
Madison, lived only on paper, had anxious friends 
who were ready to abandon their own chances for the 
time, to unite on any of the others, only to defeat the 
most dangerous competitor. Madison was, perhaps. 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 21 

cliami^ioned in tlie same way as most of tlie otlier 
cities of the brain, but with more success. Corner 
lots were much in request, among the men w^hose 
votes coukl make or unmake a capital at Belmont, 
and lobbying was the rule. It is tacitly admitted by 
many, and openly stated by some, that Madison 
might not have been selected as the site, had not 
Judge Doty permitted many legislators and their 
bosom friends, a pecuniary interest in the venture 
which Gov. Mason and he had made. The majority 
in the legislative council, as it was, proved to be only 
one in an aggregate of thirteen, and in the house of 
representatives, only four in an aggregate of twenty- 
six. The margin was too small for comfort, but it 
was sufficient. Thus it happened, that after an 
exciting contest, the peninsula between the third and 
fourth of the Four Lakes was chosen as the home of 
our territorial government, and became the site of the 
handsome city which we claim has become the admired 
of all observers. 

The time in which this lively conflict occurred 
was especially full of land speculators. The public 
domain had enriched hundreds, and millions were 
hoping that the same process might cover all their 
needs forever. It was being realized in 1836 that 
there were blanks as well as prizes in the lottery, and 
a collapse was felt to be imminent. The founders of 
paper cities were snatching a new eloquence from 
despair, and this location of the capital was one of 
many schemes on which fortunes depended. The 



22 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

elegance of some of the maps, tlie fervor of some of 
tlieir exj^ouiiders, might have charmed an impartial 
legislator, could a phenomenon so rare have been 
found in the territory of "Wisconsin, to record his 
vote for either of the projects. Happily, the proposi- 
tion of Judge Doty won a controlling interest, and 
three commissioners, chosen by joint ballot, were en- 
trusted with the task of selecting plans, making con- 
tracts and superintending the erection of the capitol. 

The sparse settlement of the territory generally, 
and of this section more particularly, cannot be better 
illustrated than by recording a few of the experiences 
of travelers, about the time of, and soon after the 
passage of the act which determined the seat of gov- 
ernment. The sessions of the legislative assembly 
were appointed to be held at Burlington, in Des 
Moines county, now Iowa, until March 4, 1839, unless 
the government buildings here should be completed 
earlier; and it was necessary to bring from a dis- 
tance every man that was wanted to assist in the 
work of preparation. The commissioners chosen for 
the task before named were Augustus A. Bird, 
acting commissioner, James Duane Doty, treasurer, 
and John F. O'l^eill. The sum aj)propriated for the 
erection was $20,000, a very small amount, considering 
the difficulties under which the work was to be under- 
taken, but help was expected from congress. 

In the month following the choice of commission- 
ers, that is to say in January, 1837, Madison was vis- 
ited from Milwaukee, by a young lawyer and land 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 23 

surveyor, since known to fame as the Hon. Moses M. 
Strong, of Mineral Point, who from that time has 
been associated with the progress of Wisconsin l)y his 
identification with raih-oads, river improvements, and 
other piiblic works, as well as by repeated terms of 
service in various offices, and in the legislature of the 
territory, as member and president in the constitu- 
tional convention to form a state constitution, and in 
the house of representatives of the state, for some 
time speaker. Mr. Strong, accompanied by Mr. Marsh 
and Mr. Potter, explored this section of country, and 
after much trouble, found the locality on which the 
capitol now stands; but they were not quite so fortu- 
nate in discovering Michel St. Cyr's cabin, where 
they hoped to obtain quarters, so that they were com- 
pelled to pass the night without shelter or food for 
their horses or themselves, on the spot where Ashton 
post office now stands, in the town of Springfield. 
From that bivouac, the party made their course by the 
Blue Mounds to Mineral Point. Mr. Strong was em- 
ployed, in February of the same year, by Judge Doty, 
to survey and stake oiF capitol square, and some of the 
adjoining lots in this city, and the haste with which 
the work must needs be pushed through would not 
allow time to be lost in waiting for genial weather. 
Mr. John Catlin and Mr. George Messersmith accom- 
panied the surveyor on this expedition, and Mr. Josiah 
A. Koonan joined the party on the way. The com- 
missariat department was much better cared for than 
it had been in the preceding month, as Mr. Strong 



24 HISTORY OF MADISOIS". 

and liis party stayed with St. Cyr, and were probably 
regaled witli tbe lialf-breed's standing dish, musk rat 
pie, while the actual survey was progressing. The 
several days journey to and from this city were thus 
recorded: The first day out from Mineral Point, the 
party reached Mr. John Messersmith's, just twelve 
miles east. On the 18 th of February, they called at 
Brigham's, where they procured provisions, and then 
pushed on to Haney's Creek, near the Cross Plains 
station on Black Earth Creek, spending that night at 
Steel's. The following day the j)arty arrived at St. 
Cyr's, early enough to permit of the work being com- 
menced. St. Cyr's place was so far from the scene of 
their labors, that the party camped out part of the 
time, despite the inclemency of the season, but heavy 
and incessant falls of snow compelled them to desist 
from their labors for many days, making the half- 
breed's cabin their headquarters. After completing 
their survey for the time, Mr. Strong and his party 
returned by way of Wallis Bowan's, who lived where 
Poynette now stands, about twelve miles south from 
Fort Winnebago. Going by the Wisconsin river, the 
party reached Helena, and thence struck across to 
Mineral Point. The scanty narrative indicates the 
nakedness of the land; but the work just accomplished 
led the way to the building of numerous habitations. 
Other travelers passing over various routes toward the 
mines, or with this city as their objective point, reveal 
the existence of Prairie Village where Waukesha now 
stands, and also the intermediate halting place at Fort 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 25 

Atkinson, en route to the Catfisli river. Mr. Alex. F. 
Pratt and Mr. Augustns Story made tliat route in 
February, 1837, shortly after the survey party had set 
out on their return to Mineral Point, and the new 
comers had been twenty-four hours without food, 
when they left their camp near the present site of 
Dunkirk. The men who went exploring in those 
days had no reason to expect luxurious living. A few 
cold roast potatoes, unceremoniously found in a wig- 
wam from which the owners were absent, were con- 
sumed with abundant relish at noon after their long 
fast, and no other food was obtained until the next 
day, when they discovered St. Cyr's cabin on Fourth 
lake. The travelers had camped without supper, in a 
ravine near where the State University now stands. 
The savory musk rat was a treat, by comparison with 
such short commons, and the party started for Blue 
Mounds well prepared for a journey. Similar lodg- 
ings and fare would not now be considered tempting, 
but pioneer life does not encourage a too critical 
taste. 

More spacious and comfortable quarters were to be 
made ready on the site of Madison by Mr. Eben 
Peck and his wife, Kosaline. Two months only had 
elapsed since the second visit of the surveying party, 
when the Peck family started from Blue Mounds to 
open a pioneer boarding house here. The snow hacl 
not gone when Mr. Peck commenced the erection of 
his premises, on land bought immediately after the 
location of the capitol; but Mr. Catlin had already 



26 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

caused a log liouse to be erected wliere tlie post office 
now stands. Owing to an accident, the interior of 
Mr. Catlin's honse was destroyed by fire before it 
conld be occupied; thus it happened that the Peck 
hosteh-y was the first residence in Madison. 

There were some rough and ready specimens of 
humanity then on hand in this region. Two French- 
men, who had associated with a party of Winnebago 
Indians in the Bhie Mounds during the winter, were 
emjDloyed to build the house, the work being superin- 
tended by Abraham Wood, who subsequently put up 
a saw mill at Baraboo. Wood was at that time liv- 
ing at Winnequah, then known as Strawberry Point, 
where he enjoyed the distinction of being the son-in- 
law of De Kaury, son of a Frenchman, a Winnebago 
chief. Wood bore an excellent reputation, but some 
of his surroundings were very hard cases. One of 
the Frenchmen was shot, in a dispute about land, 
by Berry Haney, a rival claimant, and generally, life 
was but cheaply held in those troubled times. 

Snow and the howling of wolves awakened Mrs. 
Peck from her slumbers in a tent, three miles from 
Madison, on Saturday, A]3ril 15, 1837, and she pushed 
on through the storm to the site of her more substan- 
tial dwelling, where she sat down under a tree in her 
wagon, twenty -five miles from the nearest white resi- 
dents at Blue Mounds, and nearly one hundred miles 
from the settlers at Milwaukee. The building was 
not far enough advanced to satisfy the demands of the 
hostess, and a temporary habitation was constructed, 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 27 

to serve until the larger place could be comfortably 
floored and plastered. The little hotel was speedily 
crowded with guests. Milwaukee and far away ISTew 
York were represented by visitors, and even England 
had contributed its quota to the roll of occupants. 
The comforts of the establishment were substantial 
from the first, although necessarily the bill of fare 
consisted of such articles, as could be transported from 
considerable distances; but very soon the table was a 
marvel to beholders, and cleanliness, the first requisite 
towards elegance, was a welcome feature from the 
beginning. The grand dining room was as well ven- 
tilated as the winds of heaven could make it, the hos- 
pitable board being spread in the open air to meet the 
requirements of some fifteen new arrivals. Judge 
Doty, Col. Brigham and Commissioner Bird, with 
others whose names are historical, were frequent visi- 
tors, and the unfinished building was tapestried with 
bed sheets to furnish sleeping accommodations. The 
troubles incidental to pioneer housekeeping are always 
of interest to people living in the west, and, with few 
exceptions, the men who sought accommodation then 
in Madison made themselves completely at home, 
hunting, fishing and otherwise during their leisure, 
increasing the variety of the table. Judge, after- 
wards Governor, Doty gave an excellent example of 
helpfulness by assisting a party of amateur plasterers 
to make the kitchen habitable, and one day's work 
under his direction effected much. The cheery spirit 
thus indicated was worth more than all the material 



28 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

aid, as it nerved the sturdy matron to master tlie sit- 
uation. Before long the sounds of gayety within that 
buikling would have been a surprise to the languid 
pleasure seekers in much more costly mansions. 
Really, at all times, the pleasure that can be found in 
palace or cottage depends upon glad hearts, and not 
n23on the presence of luxurious viands. 

Madison was then so great on various maps that it 
might well have been matter for surprise that tliG 
legislative assembly had been convened for its first ses- 
sion at Belmont, and for its subsequent sessions, until 
1839, at Burlington, now in Iowa; but, as will readily 
be understood, it is far more easy to construct a city 
on paper than to build one on the solid earth. Castles 
in the air are very often erected before breakfast, but 
there is just one drawback, that nobody ever dines in 
such structures. Madison city was then, vide pros- 
pectuses, the metropolitan center of cities, corres- 
ponding to the seven hills of Rome, when, in fact, 
it was only a village in fuUtro. 

The beauty of the surrounding country, with its 
twelve lakes, might well have concentrated attention 
upon Dane county, and the four lakes in Yahara, or 
Catfish valley, lying almost in a direct line from 
northwest to southeast, could not fail to be recognized 
as the regal crown of all this natural loveliness. Ke- 
gonsa, or First Lake, lowest of the four bodies of 
water, covers five square miles, having a circumfer- 
ence of nine miles and a half, its longest diameter 
being over three miles, and its shortest fully two. 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 29 

Waubesa, the Second Lake, is three miles and a half 
above Kegonsa, in the towns of Dunn and Blooming 
Grove. This lake has an average depth of twelve 
feet of crystal clear water, through which the pebbly 
bottom can be seen as if through glass. This beauti- 
ful sheet of crystal is three and a half miles long by 
about two miles across. Monona, the lovely Third 
Lake, is only seven-eighths of a mile above Waubesa, 
covering an area of six square miles, being six and a 
half miles long by two broad, and the strip of land 
which divides this lake from Mendota, the Fourth 
Lake, is the site of the capital of Wisconsin. The 
painter's pencil can alone do justice to the scene; 
words fail to convey an adequate conception of the 
picturesque effect which is mirrored to the brain, when 
an artist looks from the high ground, or still better, 
from the cupola of the capitol, upon the hills and 
lakes which seem to rival the loveliness of the moon 
and stars in the azure firmament under which they 
are now lying silvered before us. Mendota is by far 
the largest of the lakes, as it covers an area of more 
than fifteen and a half square miles. Its longest di- 
ameter is nine miles, and its breadth is fully six. Could 
the whole of the le£:islature have been brouo-ht to this 
spot in the spring or summer of 1836, it may be hoped 
that there would have been less scope for the log- 
rolling process at Belmont, in the succeeding winter, 
which came within one vote of negativing the propo- 
sition to make Madison the capital of the territory; 
but perhaps even then it would have been difficult foi 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 31 

the tranquil cliarm of the scene to reach some of their 
minds through the dense fihn of local interest. The 
shores, banks and cliffs surrounding the several lakes 
present to the beholder almost every variety of scene, 
but want of space precludes an attempt at adequate 
description. The poet Longfellow thus writes con- 
cerning our lakes, in a contribution forwarded in Jan- 
uary, 1876, for " The Centennial Eecords of the Wo- 
men of "Wisconsin," a volume edited by Mesdames 
Anna B. Butler, Emma C. Bascom, and Katharine F. 
Kerr. 

THE FOUR LAKES OF MADISON. 

Four limpid lakes — four Naiades 

Or sylvan deities are these, 

In flowing" robes of azure dressed; 

Four lovely handmaids, that uphold 

Their shining mirrors, rimmed with gold, 

To the fair city of the west. 

By day the coursers of the sun, 
Drink of these waters, as they run 
Their swift dim-nal round on high; 
By night the constellations glow. 
Far down their hollow deeps below. 
And glimmer in another sky. 

Fair lakes, serene and full of light. 
Fair town arrayed in robes of white, 
How visionary ye appear! 
AU like a floatmg landscape seems, 
In cloudland or the land of dreams, 
Bathed in a golden atmosphere. 



32 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

The commissioners charged with the erection of the 
capitol building, in which the functions of govern- 
ment were to be undertaken, were not dilatory in 
commencing their duties, and by the tenth of June 
there were thirty-six workmen upon the ground, under 
the direction of Commissioner Augustus A. Bird. The 
party had traveled with their teams from Milwaukee, 
making their roads as they came, fording streams, and 
threading their devious way through occasional 
swamps, much of the time under a drenching rain, for 
just ten days, to effect a transit which is now daily 
accomplished in little more than four hours. The sun 
gleamed out once upon the travelers, and the spot, 
made glorious by that welcome illumination, has ever 
since been known as Sun Prairie. Other workmen 
speedily followed, and it is interesting to note, in their 
several narratives, the progress in settlement along 
the traveled route, as the summer wore on. Early in 
August there was a log house and an Indian camping 
ground at Prairieville, formerly Prairie Yillage, now 
Waukesha, and five miles beyond that location, a log 
house occupied by a family named Pratt, which had 
settled on 160 acres. Half a day's journey further 
on, some settlers of the name of Brown had taken up 
a quarter section, and about eight miles from the rap- 
ids of Bock river, near the site of "Watertown, were 
three brothers named Setchell, preparing homes for 
their families. A dam and sawmill were in course of 
erection at AYatertown, by Mr. Goodhue, and at Lake 
Mills the Atwoods had made a comfortable abode 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 33 

just forty miles from tlie caj)ital. Settlement had 
made no nearer approach to Madison on that line of 
road, but the trail was well defined, and there was no 
difiicnltj in traveling where so many had already 
passed. The clear air of the capital, and the bustle 
of preparation, must have made the appetites of the 
workmen keen, as the records of the time continually 
mention expeditions to Galena and elsewhere, to re- 
plenish an often exhausted commissariat. Such crea- 
ture comforts as pork, flour, and some few luxuries, 
were dealt out with no sparing hand, as all testimo- 
nies go to show. 

The corner-stone was laid at the southeast corner of 
the capitol, on the 4th of July, 1837, and there was no 
lack of eloquence to celebrate the event ; but the press 
was not represented on the occasion, hence the speeches 
are not recorded. There was another celebration in 
November, when the foundation was completed and 
the stone w^ork ceased for the season. The money to 
pay the hands had to be brought from Green Bay; 
and Mr. Peck, who acted as courier in that emergency, 
swam several of the rivers, so that his wallet of 
paper money was somewhat dilapidated when he 
reached home. By ISTovember, 1838, the assembly 
and senate chambers were finished, but the plaster- 
ing was not dry, so that the sessions of the legisla- 
ture were held for a time in a new building, the 
American Hotel, erected at the corner of Pinck- 
ney street and Washington avenue, where the Park 
Savings Bank now stands, by Mr. A. A. Bird, the 
3 



34: HISTORY OF MADISOK. 

contractor for tlie capitol, and his partner, Mr. Mor- 
rison. 

Most of the workmen erected their own rude dwell- 
ings in the vicinity of King street, near the Third 
lake, immediately after their arrival ; but none of the 
buildings remain at this time. There was a very 
hearty and unanimous celebration on the 4th of July, 
1837, and Mrs. Peck claims that there were from two 
to three hundred persons present, including the In- 
dian chief. Little Dandy and his party ; but Gen. Mills 
and Mr. Catlin believe there must have been a misap- 
prehension as to the extent of the gathering. The 
glorification lasted several days, and Madison has 
never entered with more general gusto upon the na- 
tional celebration than was realized on that occasion 
by the little handful of white men and their Indian 
allies. Probably some of the confusion that was 
subsequently found in the accounts of the commis- 
sioners was due to the spirit that pervaded the first 
and many subsequent convivialities. 

Under the act which provided for the building of 
the capitol, and appointed commissioners for the pur- 
pose, there was an appropriation of $20,000, to which 
congress added a like sum, making $40,000 in all, to 
complete the work; and there were explicit instruc- 
tions, under which the several commissioners were 
required to advertise for proposals, which would have, 
in some degree, guarantied the public against wrong. 
The commissioners agreed upon plans that were to 
cost more than the gross total available from both 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 35 

sources of snpplj, and tlien deteriBined tliat tliey 
would not invite pnblic tenders for the work. Mr. 
Bird said, wlien examined on this qnestion, that he 
and his fellow commissioners believed that they conld 
get the work much more cheaply done than by regu- 
lar and comprehensive contracts. The work was car- 
ried on nnder this arrangement nntil April, 1S38; 
although proposals had been called for on two occa- 
sions, in September, 1837, and in February, 1838, and 
numerous bids had been received. The lowest bid 
received in February was $24,450, and from that 
sum the amounts varied up to $125,000; but Jas. 
Morrison, who was understood to be Bird's partner, 
had the contract for the completion of the building 
allotted to him, at $26,200. After the time had 
elapsed within which the contract should have been 
fulfilled, the legislature, during its session in 1839, 
held a convention of the two houses, and appointed 
other commissioners to supersede those who had acted 
up to that time. The new commissioners were ^N". C. 
Prentiss, Jas. L. Thayer and L. H. Cotton; but dis- 
putes and law suits continued to the end of the chap- 
ter. Mr. Daniel Baxter, who was in due course ac- 
cepted as the contractor to finish the work for which 
Mr. Morrison was originally engaged under commis- 
sioner Bird, was never paid what he considered his 
due for the services rendered. There were law suits 
between the first commissioners and the latter ap- 
pointees, and between the contractors and the legisla- 
ture, but little satisfaction for the public. There was 



36 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

one public servant who liad enjoyed excellent oppor- 
tunities in his professional career, as well as in the rep- 
resentative offices filled by him, to understand how the 
interests of the community had been treated; and he, 
the Hon. Moses M. Strong, before mentioned, charac- 
terized the proceedings of the commissioners first ap- 
j)ointed as being " as disgraceful to those concerned 
in it as it was destructive to the manifest intentions 
of congress. The appropriations amounted to $40,000. 
The commissioners, Messrs. Doty, 0']!^eill and Bird, 
received this large sum of money and .... exj)ended 
less than half that sum upon the public buildings. 
They entered into a secret partnership with the con- 
tractor in outside speculations, and had done little 
more than erect a shell of a capitol, scarcely capable 
of sustaining its own weight." Thus the first capitol 
building was raised in Wisconsin, and in this way the 
parties immediately involved showed their unfitness 
for the trust re230sed in them. But many things have 
to be considered in determining where, the blame 
should rest, and it is certainly significant that the 
commissioners retained the respect and confidence of 
their fellow citizens. 

The first meeting of the legislature in the city of 
Madison was held in the American Hotel on the 26tli 
of February, 1838, and Governor Dodge delivered his 
first message to the legislature in Madison in that 
building. • A committee reported that the hall and 
council chamber would be ready for the representa- 
tives and for the senate on the first day of March, 



LOCATING THE CAPITAL. 37 

and after some little further delay tlie rooms were ac- 
tually occupied, but it was an act of liardiliood to at- 
tempt the transaction of business under such diffi- 
culties. Col. Childs, one of the members who was 
entrusted with the task of carpeting the rooms and 
rendering them habitable, has left a record of the 
sad condition of affairs, in which Contractor Morri- 
son's hosrs were better sheltered than the law makers 
for Wisconsin. If under such circumstances there 
were some efforts at log rolling, it may have been 
merely to maintain animal heat, by such exercise. 
The legislature adjourned for twenty days, to permit 
of the hall and chamber being rendered, in some de- 
gree, warm and comfortable. There was a difficulty 
in procuring hotel accommodation also, although 
there were now three houses where guests could be 
received. The Madison Hotel had two rooms that 
would lodge four persons each ; the Madison House 
also two rooms that would lodge six altogether, and 
the American Hotel had eight rooms, in which twen- 
ty-six members could find accommodation. The 
prices charged were high enough to satisfy the most 
fastidious, but in every other respect, there was abun- 
dant room for complaint. Happily the, pioneers were 
inclined to make the best of things as they were, al- 
though Judge J. G. Knapp asserts that six men were 
placed in a room, only sixteen feet square, in the 
Madison Hotel, and that the floors all over that pop- 
ulous establishment were nightly covered with shake 
downs, for transient visitors. Thus the task of locat- 



88 , HISTORY OF MADISON. 

ing the caj^ital, erecting tlie government buildings, 
and assembling the first legislature in Madison, hav- 
ing been accomplished, we can relieve this oveiiong 
chapter from further duty, and turn our attention to- 
ward the new comers, whose j)resence had already en- 
livened the metropolis, and whose industrial efforts 
promised more for the future of the community than 
all that had been accomplished by log rolling and 
manipulation, in the speculative successes of the com- 
missioners and their attaches from the beginning. 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 39 



CHAPTEK III. 

PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 

The PIONEERS of our city were not the first settlers 
in tlie territory, now knowTi as Wisconsin, and there- 
fore we shall look outside our own borders to con- 
struct a sketch of the early days, which will connect 
the house of Eben Peck and his wife Kosaline, with 
the remote past, as well as with the present. The 
chief whose name is spelt by different writers in so 
many differing ways, De Kaury, Day-Kau-Ray, De- 
corrali, Decori, and otherwise, in every manner that 
will give even an approximation to the original sound, 
is said to have been the son of a French voyageur, or 
trapper, who had made his home among the Indians, 
giving rise to a succession of able men, who were in- 
fluential in the affairs of the tribes. One of that 
family, a Winnebago, surrendered Black Hawk to 
Gen. Street, the Indian Agent, at Prairie du Chien, 
after the close of the Black Hawk war in 1832. The 
Frenchman Pellkie — whose name is undoubtedly a 
corruption from the original, who assisted to build 
the first log house for Eben Peck — was officered by 
another resident among the Indians, named Wood, 
afterwards a mill owner, who had married into the 
family of a De Kaury. Some exquisite stories could 



40 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

be written of the Four Lake country, connecting In- 
dians witli wliite men, in the days before the city of 
Madison was even imagined. One of the De Kaurys 
exercised the powers of a chief in this immediate lo- 
cality. Gray-headed Day-Kau-Ray or De Kaury, 
with a considerable force, met Gen. Atkinson at 
Portage, while Gen. Dodge was in the field during 
the troubles preliminary to the war, which was ended 
at the Bad Ax. They were various in their character- 
istics, as well as numerous and widely diffused, these 
Franco-Indian warriors and sachems. One-eyed De 
Kaury of La Crosse bore a good reputation, but an- 
other of the family was suggestively described as 
Rascal De Kaury. Mrs. Kinzie says that the mother 
of the race, a Winnebago, was alive in 1831, and sup- 
posed to be more than a century old. There were 
four or five brothers, of whom the Winnebago chief 
was one, and Washington — or Wau-kon — De Kaury 
another. One sister married a French trader named 
Lecuyer, another was twice married to Canadian 
French traders, named De Riviere and Grignon, and 
three married Indians. But enough about the De 
Kaurys. They were pioneers in this territory, busily 
eno^ao^ed in the war of 1812 on the side of the British, 
and the advent of white settlers was the prelude to 
their removal by death or transfer. Descendants from 
the Lecuyer marriage were united in wedlock with 
white settlers at Green Bay, and elsewhere, and pros- 
pered according to the customs of civilized life. 
Eben Peck and his wife came to the Blue Mounds, 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 41 

where tliey rented the tavern stand o^vned by Col. 
Brigham, and boarded the old colonel and the hands 
emj)loyed by him. While so engaged, Mrs. Peek en- 
tertained Jndge and Mrs. Doty on one occasion, and 
the conversation turning npon Madison, where the 
location of the capital was yet recent, the jndge and 
his good lady made a promise, which was afterwards 
forgotten, apparently, that if Mrs. Peck was the first 
to commence housekeeping on the village site, she 
should have the best lot in the township, and also a 
present. Mrs. Peck was the first housekeeper, but it 
is probable that she did not care to recall the promise, 
which in the burry of afiairs, at that time, might 
easily have been forgotten by Judge Doty. Boarding 
honses must have been expensive and troublesome 
institutions to run, in the early days, as we find that 
flour fetched $17 a barrel in Milwaukee in 1838, iri*e- 
spective of the cost of freight, in the days when trav- 
elers made their own routes, and carried axes along to 
cut down the timber that blocked tlieir course. Pork 
cost as high as §33 per barrel, and potatoes $3 per 
bushel ; add thereto the cost of transfer, and the profits 
incidental to boarders must have been whittled down 
considerably. Some courage was wanted then to open 
an establishment, such as the Peck family meant to 
run, when Indian villages were the only habitations 
near, and deserted wigwams along the borders of the 
lakes and streams told of the red men who had flour- 
ished and faded in this locality. Until now the cabin 
of Michel St. Cyr had served all the purposes of a 



42 HISTORY OF IMADISON. 

hostelry, and the old man liad not grown rich by en- 
tertaining his few and scattering guests. 

There was certain to be a much greater demand for 
hotel accommodation, because the capitol had to be 
soon erected, and visitors were sure to become more 
numerous as the works advanced, but the workmen, 
as the event proved, would build their own lodgings 
before long, and make arrangements among them- 
selves about cooking provisions. Travelers wdio came 
to see the country, to visit the mines, or to see the 
spots made famous by engagements during the Black 
Hawk war of five years before, seldom failed to visit 
Madison, which had charms of its own sufficient to 
justify a detour. Before long there were numerous 
hotels doing a prosperous business on the ground 
which had at first been exclusively possessed by Eben 
Peck's log house; and hundreds occupied their leisure 
in exploring the sparkling lakes, skirted with every 
kind of scenic beauty. Groves and meadows, sugges- 
tive of love in a cottage, capes, bluffs, ravines and 
prairies, the peninsula itself with its elevation seventy 
feet above the lakes, on which the capitol stands, now 
in the center of a lovely park, the undulating lines 
descending thence to rise again in numerous ridges, 
and most beautiful of all, in the grounds now occu- 
pied by the university, offered variety enough to grat- 
ify the most persistent searcher after loveliness. Mrs. 
Peck became the owner of a canoe which had been 
the property of an Indian chief, and Cleopatra never 
enjoyed her famous voyages, celebrated by the poets, 




1837. 



44 HISTORY OF :madisqn. 

more than did the few who were privileged to glide 
over the lakes of crystal in that vessel. Only to see 
that boat freighted with pleasure seekers was a delight 
equal to all that is realized by the average looker on 
in contemplating a regatta. The joy of the rowers, 
and the charms of the scene could not be surpassed. 
A picture painted by 0. A. Johnson, a fine and truth- 
ful representation of the first residence in Madison, 
with the canoe in the distance, is one of the most val- 
ued properties of the Historical Society, and an en- 
graving of that scene accompanies this sketch. The 
primitive looking dwelling was at one time quite a 
luxurious abode, on Butler- street, near the Lake House, 
now the Meredith House, not far from the Third Lake. 

The picture is a perfect reproduction of the reality, 
in almost every detail. 

Professor Chapman has recorded one fact wdiich 
should long since have been tested by experience, in 
the natural desire of the early settlers to vary the sup- 
plies on their table. He states on the authority of 
Mr. Easdall that the Indians used a root which grew 
in the marshes, as a substitute for potatoes, called by 
the red men no-ah-how-in. It was bulbous, but did 
not resemble arrow root. Mr. Rasdall said that hav- 
ing been cast ashore, without provisions, from Men- 
dota Lake, in 1835, while arranging a trading estab- 
lishment near the First Lake, he had subsisted on the 
root in question for ten days. The early settlers were 
not very speculative, as it appears that water for daily 
consumption was brought from the lakes until 1839, 



PIONEEES AND CELEBEITIES. 45 

wlien tlie first well upon the plat was excavated on 
the American House lot, the labor being performed 
by two soldiers, James ISTevil and an Italian named 
"Whildean. Mi'. Darwin Clark, our fellow citizen, 
gives a vivid idea of the state of society in the sum- 
mer of 18 37, and while glancing thereat, we can un- 
derstand that a fully employed population, engaged 
upon a task wdiich must be finished in a hurry, and 
surrounded by hot blooded Indians, had little oppor- 
tunity for making j)ermanent imj^rovements, wdiich 
others would probably enjoy. That summer a party 
of Winnebagoes camped on the shore of the Third 
Lake, on the flat just below the Meredith House. 
During the continuance of the encampment, a quarrel 
occurred between two young Indians, one of whom 
stabbed the other, and from different sources we learn 
that the murderer sat on the body of his victim with 
perfect unconcern, smoking his pipe, as though mod- 
estly disclaiming special merit in a very creditable 
transaction. The white workmen, who were unaccus- 
tomed to look upon murder with satisfaction, were 
much incensed, and by way of warning that the knives 
of the red men must not be too freely brought in as 
umpires, they carried their rifles and shot guns to and 
from their work. The Winnebagoes took the hint in 
a proper spirit, and soon after left for parts unknown. 
The Indian stabbed as above described, was the brother- 
in-law of Pellkie's partner, another French Canadian, 
and, as stated elsewhere, Pellkie was himself shot on 
a subsequent occasion. There were consequently other 



46 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

matters deserving attention besides digging wells, 
and seeking roots as substitutes for the potato. The 
vigorous action of the volunteers, who provided their 
owa. rifles and ammunition, may have prevented worse 
trouble. Public oj)inion, speaking through the rifle 
barrel, was a power which the red skins did not wish 
to provoke. 

About two weeks after the arrival of Mrs. Peck in 
Madison, a party of fifteen men came on from Mil- 
waukee via Janesville, and the work of the hostess be- 
gan in earnest. Commissioner Bird was one of the ar- 
rivals, and he was accomj)anied by hired hands wliose 
work had consisted in blazing and preparing a road by 
which other workmen and supplies would follow. It 
was important that proper tracks should be defined 
where so much trafiic must shortly occur and the act- 
ing commissioner was provident. The American 
Hotel, already mentioned, was built in 1838, and cir- 
cumstances gave that establishment an advantage over 
all competitors, for a time. It continued to be a place 
of considerable note, imtil it was destroyed by fire in 
1868. The Madison Hotel also dated from 1838, but 
the structure was at first quite small. The territor- 
ial supreme court was organized in this building, in 
June, 1838, and held its first session here when the 
legislature assembled in the American Hotel. Gov. 
Dodge and many of the leading members of both 
houses made the Madison Hotel their headquarters. 
The structure belonged to Commissioner Bird, and was 
at first kept by his brother. The long continued efforts 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 47 

of tlie other side to remove the seat of government from 
Madison found in this biiildino^ an unceasinfi: watch- 
fulness which could not be evaded. There were nu- 
merous hosts, after the hotel passed out of the hands 
of the Bird family, and the name was changed several 
times, but it w^as known by the old name at the last, 
in March, 1863. It was situated on King street on the 
present site of Dean's block. The establishment kept 
by Mr. and Mrs. Peck, has already been mentioned. 
The new comers, whose names and influence have 
been beneficially associated with Madison since that 
date, would defy enumeration, but there are some who 
cannot be omitted, from a record, however brief, which 
aims at any measure of completeness. The scene en- 
acted in plastering the kitchen of the Peck boarding 
house, in wdiich Judge Doty, Col. Brigham, and all 
the available masculinity of Madison, took part, is 
historical. The pioneers of Wisconsin were w^ell 
rej)resented and w^ell occupied on that occasion. 
One of the earliest yisitors from abroad, was an Eng- 
lish geologist named Featherstonehaugh, afterwards a 
British consul until his death in 1866, and he pro- 
voked the ire of his hostess at a later date, by some 
ill-mannered jokes and very unnecessary criticisms, 
about Mrs. Peck and the accommodations obtained in 
her pioneer restaurant, which were published by 
him in London. There is unexceptional testimony, 
from a witness no less reliable than Gen. Mills, that 
Mrs. Kosaline Peck made excellent coffee, a point 
expressly denied by the earliest writer whose lucu- 



48 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

brations concerning Madison, were puMislied in 
Europe. The somewliat vulgar and untrustworthy 
book served its purpose in procuring him a govern- 
ment appointment under the British crown, so that 
Madison helped at least one man to fortune. 

Before the days of Feather stonehaugh, there had 
been celebrities in Wisconsin, and not a few of them 
had stood where the capitol has since been erected. 
Capt. Jonathan Carver may have been a visitor to this 
precise locality, certainly he was for some time in the 
lake country. Gen. Dodge, who came occasionally 
to the capital, in discharging his official duties as 
governor, was in that way a Madisonian, and it is no 
small matter that we should be identified with the 
man whose conduct of the war did most toward 
effecting the defeat of Black Hawk in 1832. Col. 
Zachary Taylor was for some time in command of the 
troops in Prairie du Chien, and while there, a young 
lieutenant, Jefferson Davis, was sparking the daughter 
of the commandant, so that there were two celebrities 
in Wisconsin ; the one destined to become president of 
the United States, after serving the country for many 
years in the field with " rough and ready " effective- 
ness, and to die of the turmoil of political life; the 
other, to lose by ill-directed ambition, the repute won 
as a soldier, and to find the grave of his success in 
the presidency of the confederation whose ruin it was 
liis fortune to survive. Both officers rendered good ser- 
vice in the Black Hawk war until the end was reached 
in the battle of the Bad Axe on the second of August, 



PIONEERS AND CELEBEITIES. 49 

1832. But for tlie vigor witli wliicli the United States 
troops and. volunteers fought then, in vindication of 
the faith to be placed in treaties, and in defense of 
property and life, there might have been no Madi- 
son on this peninsula. In that sense the men named 
were pioneers. 

The Hon. John Catlin was essentially among the 
first comers. He was one of the party that accom- 
panied the surveyor, Moses M. Strong, to survey and 
plat the town, and a lot purchased by himself, the site 
of the present post office, was utilized by him by the 
erection thereon of a log house, long used as the post 
office store. That building was the first erected in 
Madison, as it was commenced some time before Eben 
Peck began his structure; but an accident destroyed 
the interior of the building, a fire having been by 
some means originated, and in consequence the prime- 
val log house was not the first residence. Mr. Catlin 
was the pioneer jpar excellence. He was a Green 
Mountain boy, as he came from Orwell, Vermont. 
HeVas a partner with Mr. Strong in the law business 
at Mineral Point in 1836, and clerk of the supreme 
court. He became postmaster in this city in 1837. Pe- 
moved from office by Gen. Harrison, he was reappoint- 
ed by President Tyler. Subsequently he served as 
chief clerk of the house of representatives ; was district 
attorney for Dane county, and judge at a later date ; in 
1846, he became secretary of the territory. Mr. Catlin 
was a good citizen and an able man of business, and 
his genial manners secured him a wide circle of friends. 



50 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Hon. Simeon Mills ranks in tlie same category, 
with this difference, that he still remains in onr com- 
munity. Born in I^orfolk, Litchfield county, Conn., in 
February, 1810, he is now in his sixty-seventh year, and 
he has spent his lifetime in Wisconsin since attaining 
the age of twenty-five. Mineral Point was his first 
abode in this territory, but immediately after the loca- 
tion of the capital, he moved to this city when there 
was only one house upon the ground, and on the 10th 
of June, 1837, he commenced a small building of hewed 
logs, in which to begin business as a storekeeper. 
For five years from 1837, Mr. Mills carried the mails 
to and from this city for the government, and about 
the same time the responsible duties of a justice of 
the peace were imposed upon him by Gov. Dodge. 
Numerous offices of honor and emolument have since 
that date been conferred on Mr. Mills. He was one 
of the commissioners for Dane county upon its organ- 
ization in 1839; clerk of the United States district 
court; territorial treasurer; first senator for Dane 
county; one of the regents engaged in the organiza- 
tion of the state university, and subsequently pay- 
mastei- general of the state during the war, from 1861. 
The record left by Gen. Mills, in every relation of his 
well spent life, reflects credit on one of the oldest 
pioneer families in Dane county, and his industry has 
contributed, in no small degree, to the prosperity and 
growth of the city. 

Darwin Clark came to this city with acting com- 
missioner Bird, in the spring of 1837, to commence 



nONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 51 

work as a cabinet maker on the capitol, and since tliat 
time lie lias been a resident in Madison, holding many 
offices of trust with honor to himself, and conducting 
for many years a very extensive business. He was 
born in Otsego county, N". Y., in May, 1812, in which 
state he also married his first wife. He set out for 
the west when twenty-five years of age, to make a 
home where there would be better opportunities than 
in the crowded east. The pioneers had among them 
few more estimable men. A young mechanic of mark 
in the earlj^ days, when there was only one family in 
Madison, and growling up with the place, figuring in 
its gayeties in the first New Year's festivities, which 
lasted two days, a guest at the first wedding wdien a 
young woman in Mrs. Peck's household became the 
wife of Jairus S. Potter, his name is interwoven with 
most of the early celebrations, as w^ell as with many 
later responsibilities. 

The community was very limited when that mar- 
riage occurred, on the 1st of April, 1838, and the bet- 
ter half was held in high esteem. Gen. Simeon Mills, 
not then holding military rank, but a prosperous store- 
keeper, and in office, rose betimes to gather an early 
bouquet of wild flowers to grace the occasion. The 
spring, in honor of the event of course, came early, or 
that feature would have been wanting from the festi- 
val. The wedding ceremony was performed by Mr. 
Eben Peck, in his capacity as justice of the j^eace, and 
when the dance followed, the better half of the Peck 
family played on the violin, assisted by Luther, her 



52 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

husband's brother, according as the exigencies of the 
time demanded. Mrs. Peck played well, but she 
danced well also, and there were so few ladies to take 
the floor that one could hardly be spared to form the 
orchestra. The disparity of the sexes was happily ex- 
pressed by Mrs. Peck: " You cannot call it succotash; 
there was too much corn for the beans." Both bride 
and bridegroom have since passed away, but the mem- 
ory of the event is part of the domestic history of the 
city. Mrs. Prosper B. Bird was present, and she yet 
remains to honor and grace- our community, a living 
memento of a time from which sad memories, mingled 
with few delights, yield a gentle perfume as of bruised 
but never dying flowers. Mr. Potter died in Madi- 
son, somewhere about the year 1841. His wife's 
maiden name was Elizabeth Allen. There were two 
Potters then in the village, Jairus, known as " Long 
Potter," for he was a man of great altitude, and Hor- 
ace, whose more stunted proportions caused him to be 
known as " Short Potter." Miss Allen, after consid- 
ering "the long and the short of it," did not follow 
the maxim "of two evils choose the least," conse- 
quently there was more husband in her home than in 
any other household near the capitol. Darwin Clark 
was good for many things, besides, being good com- 
pany, in the early days, as thank goodness, he still re- 
mains. In the summer of 1837, when Wm. A. 
Wheeler came here to erect a steam saw mill west of 
the foot of Butler street, on the bank of lake Mendota, 
the young cabinet maker was able to give valuable 



PIONEERS AND CEI.EBRITIES. 53 

assistance toward tlie erection of tlie works; and 
althongli owing to the fact that the engine and ma- 
chinery had to be brought from Detroit, operations 
were not commenced until nearly the end of the year ; 
much of the timber used in the old cajDitol was sawed 
in Wheeler's mill. The McDonalds, the Smiths, and 
others whose names have escaped us, who mingled in 
the throng when Commissioner Bird and his wife led 
off in the " Virginia reel " or "Hunt the squirrel," 
will never have for us more than a phantom existence, 
as they "come like shadows, so depart ;"' but friend 
Clark is a reality. 

The days in which Judge Doty, treasurer of the 
board of commissioners, came in from Green Bay 
with specie and currency to pay the men, guarded by 
Capt. John Symington and a squad of soldiers from 
Fort Howard, were not without their charm; more 
especially when we see the commissioner laying aside 
the pomp of office to stand sponsor at the informal 
christening of the first white child born in Madison; 
and editor Sholes, who was then in his company, must 
have been favorably impressed by our band of pio- 
neers. Some four years later we find the Hon. C. C. 
Sholes identified with the publication of the Enquirer 
newspaper, the material of which journal was eventu- 
ally removed to Milwaukee from this city. Mr. 
Sholes was more actively identified with Kenosha. 
The name most intimately associated with our early 
press is that of the Hon. George Hyer; but his work 
in that capacity will appear in reviewing our news- 



54: HISTORY OF MADISON. 

paper historj. He was one of our pioneers, and be- 
fore Madison was platted, lie had accustomed liimself 
to thread his devious track through the woods, having 
on one occasion made his way from Milwaukee to 
Green Bay, and on another in 183 7, from the same 
starting ]3oint to Rock river settlement, when he was 
specially sworn in by old Solomon Juneau to carry 
the mail. 

In the earliest apportionment of offices for Dane 
county, the name of John Stoner occurs as treasurer, 
and that of R. L. Ream, father of the famous Yinnie 
Ream, a Madisonian, as register of deeds. Ream 
succeeded to the old log house erected by Eben Peck, 
after another residence had been built for that family. 
Gen. Geo. P. Delaplaine was surveyor. Col. Bird was 
the first sherifi*, William A "Wheeler, assessor, Adam 
Smith, collector, and the three commissioners were, 
Simeon Mills, Eben Peck and Jeremiah Lycan, with 
LaFayette Kellogg for clerk. The father of Yinnie 
Ream assumed the management of the pioneer 
^'Tavern Stand," as Mrs. Peck phrases it, when Eben 
and his wife gave their attention to farming, unfor- 
tunately for themselves, cultivating a piece of land 
which had been deeded to them by mistake. The 
change was made in the spring of 1838, and the birth 
place of the sculptress was torn down in 1857, after 
twenty years of peculiarly eventful service. The old 
Madison House, the picture of which we preserve, was, 
imder the presidency named, the resort of the aristo- 
cracy of "Wisconsin, and it long continued to be the 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 65 

stage house. According to Judge Knapp, the charges 
were not very moderate, as " two feet by six of floor 
could be had for the night," only upon payment of 
" two pence per square foot," and " the weary traveler 
might spread his own blanket, using his saddle or 
portmanteau for a pillow, rejoicing that he had so 
good a bed." The other hotels w^ere no more sump- 
tuous than Keam's, as in all of them, the lakes, the 
w^oods and the slow coming " prairie schooner," were 
drawn upon liberally to supply the table. Sleeping 
accommodation was at a premium everywhere, even 
after the American Hotel, the largest on the ground, 
was raised. 

The first treasurer of Dane county, John Stoner, 
was born in Washington county, Maryland, in 1791, 
consequently, when he died in this city, in 1872, he 
w^as in his eighty-first year. He served in the war of 
1812, and was one of the early arrivals in Madison 
village. His pioneer log cabin Avas in the second 
ward, standing on the lot now occupied by the church 
of Norwegian Lutherans. The old landmarks are 
nearly all eftaced, so far as they were raised by men 
in the springs and summers of 1837-8. The log house 
on the marsh is gone, the first frame house built in 
the city at the southwest corner of Wilson and Pinck- 
ney street, for J. S. Schermerhorn, has given place to 
a large two story brick dwelling. The old steam mill 
on the bank of the lake is so entirely gone that it is 
not easy to find even a trace of its foundations. A 
grey sandstone slab, erected to mark the spot where a 



56 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

carpenter named S. "Warren was buried in 1838, hav- 
ing been killed by lightning in that summer, cannot 
be found. 

" Chief Justice of the Peace, Seymour," who is 
mentioned in a very pleasant and appreciative way 
in " Keminiscences of Madison," by Judge Knapp, 
loomed large in our early days, at once a pioneer and 
a celebrity. Mrs. Peck mentions him as possessed of 
a feather bed, once her property, and containing 
^'over thirty pounds of fresh geese feathers," so that 
he had ideas of luxury. Judge Pratt says, that " his 
pipe was part of the man; with that in his mouth, he 
was clerk in the commissioners' store, kept books, 
dealt out silks and dry goods, tea and powder; was 
surveyor of the to^vn plat, only he read the degrees 
and minutes at the wrong end of the needle ; tried 
causes, civil and criminal, administered justice, min- 
gled largely with equity and common sense All 

knew he was the Gazette^ the very latest edition, and 
he had under his special care all the affairs of town, 

state and church A dreadful sickness came 

upon him and Seymour lost his pipe, the city losing 
its best guardian." Gov. Dodge appointed Seymour 
justice of the peace, upon the recommendation of Eben 
Peck, when Dane county was organized, and the com- 
missioners set about bridging the Cat sh, and cie t- 
ing the jail, reducing " the bounty on wolves' scalps," 
to render their funds available for such works as have 
been suggested. AYm. '^. Seymour published a direc- 
tory of Madison, a copy of which is in the liands of 



^ PIONEEKS AND CELEBKITIES. 57 

the Historical Society. He has lived to see several 
other works of a similar character, but none of them 
more interesting than his own. The stroke of paraly- 
sis under which he fell in J^ovember, 1859, has not 
deprived him of the satisfaction of witnessing the 
steady growth of the city, the infant steps of whose 
village days were in part guided by himself. His 
form is well known on the streets, and most of the 
old pioneers can tell of some good deed in his career, 
which retains for him a pleasant place in their mem- 
ories. The Masonic fraternity stood by the " Chief 
Justice of the Peace " in his affliction, and by their 
aid he is comfortably circumstanced. 

Gen. Geo. P. Delaplaine was county surveyor. We 
find him on the Fourth of July, 1839, reading the 
JeiFersonian Declaration, when William T. Sterling 
was orator of the day, and the music on the occasion 
was anything but first class. The dinner that day 
consisted of bacon and fish, with the addition of much 
whisky. Customarily the dinner comprised fish and 
bacon with less whisky. The celebration lasted 
three days. The pioneer Geo. P. Delaj)laine came 
from Milwaukee to clerk in Jas. Morrison's store, and 
his ability no less than his high character soon made 
him master of the situation. His name stands 
honorably identified with most of the movements in 
early days for the advantage of Madison. Another 
of the early pioneers whose life has been honorable to 
the community, although there are no brilliant deeds 
to be pointed to in his career, is Mr. E. M. Williamson, 



58 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

of Pinckney street, one of our earliest school teachers, 
and identified with the establishment of the Episco- 
pal church, which will be found more particularly 
mentioned elsewhere. Many names that should have 
had notice have been omitted, but that is inevitable 
because of our limitations. The position and labors 
of Mr. and Mrs. Peck have already been briefly indi- 
cated. Eben Peck started overland to California 
when the gold fever spread over this w^estern country, 
and it is supposed that he was slain by the Indians on 
the jDlains, but there is no record of his death, and it 
is claimed that he was heard from at a later date. 
His wife, a brave and able woman, has written many 
piquant papers, descriptive of pioneer life, in which 
her own experiences made her proficient. In her 
house the earliest visitors to Madison found a home, 
in her dining room the gayeties of several seasons 
found their earliest expression. Her husband as jus- 
tice of the j^eace united in the bonds of wedlock the 
first coujDle lawfully married in this city, and after 
the irrevocable knot had been tied, as we have seen, 
the violin of the justice's lady gladdened the hearts 
of the assembled throng while they threaded the 
mazes of the dance. In the old log house was born 
Miss Wisconsiana Yictoria Peck, the first child that 
saw the light in this city, concerning whose christen- 
ing some ^particulars are given. Mrs. Peck and her 
husband were the pioneer settlers, and subsequently 
the lady became the first settler in Baraboo, where 
she still resides. 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 59 

Mrs. Prosper Eiirgoyne Bird, formerly Miss 
Hewitt, another of our pioneers, came of good revolu- 
tionary stock, and was one of the most valued of our 
early residents. Her husband built a house for her 
in tlijs city, while she remained in Milwaukee. There 
was only one house in Janesviile when the lady came 
through to her destination. The party had seen 
enough of pioneer life to have discouraged most 
people, before they left Milwaukee. "While they 
were neighbors of " Old Solomo," as the Indians al- 
ways called Col. Juneau, they witnessed an election, 
in which the principal argument used in favor of the 
successful ticket was a dipper placed in a barrel of 
whisky, by the founder of the Cream City. The po- 
tency of such logic was manifested in the fact that a 
§ober man could hardly be found in the settlement at 
the close of the day. The first boat launched on Lake 
Michigan, '^The Juneau," kissed the water while 
Mrs. Bird w^as remaining in Milwaukee. The party 
set out on their road altogether, but at the last mo- 
ment Mr. Bird, having business to transact on account 
of the capitol, for the building of which his brother was 
acting commissioner, returned to the village, leavino- 
his courageous wife to prosecute the journey without 
his guidance, until sundown the following day. The 
ferryman at Janesviile was not at home, so the little 
band went round by Beloit, where there were two 
log houses, one on each side of the river. The home 
provided for their accommodation was an uninclosed 
frame building, on the street now known as Webster 



60 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

street, on lot eight, and the bnilding was not com 
pleted nntil April, 1838. During part of the inter- 
val, Mrs. Bird resided in a log honse on the site 
where Kentzler's livery stable now stands, and after- 
wards moved into the old log boarding house near 
Mr. Pyncheon's residence. There were, when Mrs. 
Bird arrived in the village, only four log houses; 
that built for Mr. Catlin, and partly consumed 
by fire; that occupied by Mrs. Peck, and known 
long after as the Madison House; the residence of 
Mr. Stoner, already mentioned; and one other of 
less note. Such an addition to the village was im- 
portant. 

The workmen engaged upon the capitol boarded 
with the newly arrived housekeej)er, and there were 
rough times and hard work for all hands when she 
began her pioneer experience in this locality. In 
Mrs. Bird's mother's home the first death in the new 
settlement occurred from typhoid fever, and the second 
happened from her own house having been struck by 
lightning. The cemetery then in use forms now a 
part of the university grounds. The Bird family 
was one of the most numerous and energetic among 
the pioneers, but a volume would be required to re- 
cord their several fortunes and adventures. 

Col. Wm. B. Slaughter, whose eloquence is still the 
pride of his fellow townsmen, was born in 1797, in 
Culpepper county, Yirginia, and came to reside in 
Green Bay in 1835, where he was appointed register 
of the land office. While serving as a member of the 



PIONEERS AND CELEBRITIES. 61 

legislative council of Micliigan, wliicli assembled at 
Green Bay in tlie winter of that year, lie initiated tlie 
memorial for the organization of Wisconsin. About 
the same date, he entered the lot held by St. Cyr, near 
this city, and gave the half-breed $200 for his im- 
provements. When the capital was located, he made 
his residence where the City of the Four Lakes was 
platted by M. L. Martin, Judge Doty and himself, 
and continued a resident until 1845, when Yirginia 
attracted him to his old home. On the commence- 
ment of the war, the colonel was appointed commis- 
sary and quarter-master by the president; and now, 
nearly eighty years of age, he is one of the most 
active and . intellectual of the residents in this city. 
There are but few men to be found who, from their 
personal experience, know more about Madison from 
the beginning. Soon after the capitol was commenced, 
and when Commissioner Bird's residence was small 
and cold. Sheriff Cliilds from Green Bay mentions a 
visit to Col. Wm. B. Slaughter's, on the west bank of 
the Fourth Lake, near Pheasant Branch. Long before 
this time, all the land business of the territory had 
passed through the colonel's hands at Green Bay. 
"When the location of the capital was under debate, 
and long before it came to the vote. Col. Slaughter 
made arrangements with St. Cyr, under which the 
half-breed enabled the colonel to enter the tract in 
the summer or autumn of 1835, and he subsequently 
conveyed an interest to Judge Doty, with the hoj)e 
that the capital would be there located. The arrange- 



62 HISTORY OF MADISOX. 

ment witli Gov. Mason of Micliigan, and tlie purchase 
of the peninsula for $1,500, wrecked Col. Slaughter's 
project, seeing that he was absent in the south while 
the session was being held at Belmont, upon w^hich 
the location turned. Sheriff Childs, already men- 
tioned, says that the votes which determined the mat- 
ter were those cast by representatives who knew that 
their several localities would be erected into a distinct 
territory soon afterwards. Iowa had six councilmen 
and representatives, so that the influence of the out- 
siders really determined the issue, and the country 
west of the Mississippi was separately organized with 
little delay. Childs says that the town plat of Madi- 
son was divided into twenty shares, and that he was 
offered one share for $200, apparently w^ith the hope 
that he would in that way be induced to vote for the 
location. His Roman virtue was equal to the emer- 
gency, and Green Bay was pleased with the course 
taken by him. Col. Slaughter's site had been very 
wisely chosen, upon the historical ground where Gen. 
Dodge held his " talk" with the Winnebagoes, when 
the Black Hawk war had begun, and after Stillman 
had sustained his defeat. 

Josiah A. Koonan did not come to our territory 
until the year 1838, and in 181:0, removed to Milwau- 
kee, whence, still later, he migrated to Chicago to 
take charge of the Industrial Age; but as the 
founder of the first newspaper issued in this city, the 
Wisconsin Enquirer^ he must have a place among 
our pioneers. The first press and printing materials 



PIONEEES AND CELEBEITIES. 63 

boiiglit for this enterprise, were thrown overboard, off 
Mackinaw, in Lake Huron, in a storm, on the voyage 
from Buffalo to Green Bay, and in consequence the 
Racine Argus^ with its material, was purchased 
and removed, to do duty in the caj^ital. The paper 
was published on King street, in a room over the 
commissioners' store, and eventually some of the 
ablest journalists in the state were identified with its 
career. C. C. Sholes became a partner in the paper 
in 1839, as is elsewhere mentioned, and it lived until 
June, 1843, taking an active part in all public affairs 
until its death. Judge Knapp was for some time its 
editor. That gentleman has left on record a brief 
description of the Fourth of July celebration in 1839, 
and according to his winged words, there was no lack 
of spirit among the celebrants. There was an oration, 
and the declaration in proper order, but a liberal sup- 
ply of "Pecatonica" and "Eock River," the latter a 
peculiarly strong water, with an orchestra consisting 
of two violins and a flute, filled every soul with mar- 
tial music. A fat steer which had been brought to 
grace the tables of the citizens on the Fourth, was 
forgotten until three days later, when the keg was 
empty, and there was then but little superfluous fat 
upon the bones of the delayed sacrifice. It must not 
be supposed that all the citizens were affected by " old 
rye," but the carrier, who had brought the steer, had 
kept the secret of its whereabouts, until his senses 
were sobered by the emptying of the keg. 
Abel Rasdall cannot be utterly omitted from a 



64 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

record of our pioneers ; his bravery during the troubles 
and his good faith at all times, entitle him to be men- 
tioned, but he has been referred to at large in the first 
chapter, as will be remembered. 

The schoolmaster was in request, but the number 
of pupils was not great. Mr. Edgar S. Searle taught 
school in the summer of 1830, and was followed by 
Mr. E. M. Williamson, mentioned among our pio- 
neers, w^ho had six pupils. Mr. Williamson taught 
at the corner of Pinckney and Dayton streets, in a 
very primitive building, and his love for the task, 
which was continued until 1842, must have been much 
greater than his remuneration. Mr. Theodore Conkey 
succeeded him in the winter of 1842. Miss Pierce 
was at the same time engaged in the tuition of girls 
in an old building near the spot where Dean's block 
is now standing. Another step in the same direction, 
aiming at the improvement of adults, was an associa- 
tion for church purposes, entered into in July, 1839. 
The instrument of association indicated the establish- 
ment of a parish of the Protestant Episcopal Church 
as the object of the members. There were sixteen 
signatures to the document. 



THE STATE UNIVERSITY. 65 



CHAPTEE lY. 

THE STATE UNIVERSITY. 

The example set by tlie Pilgrim Fathers in 1636, 
in preparing for the foundation of Harvard, less than 
sixteen years after their landing on this continent, has 
been fruitful in suggesting like works all over the 
Union. An endowment of public lands for a sem- 
inary in "Wisconsin was provided by an act of con- 
gress which was approved on the the 12th of June, 
1838. The land thus given amounted to 46,080 acres. 
Prior to the passage of the congressional act, and an- 
ticipating its provisions, the territorial legislature, in 
January, 1838, prepared to incorporate the University 
with all the powers and limitations common to such 
institutions. 

The first quorum of the board of visitors stands on 
record as having met pursuant to adjournment, Decem- 
ber 1, 1838, when Henry L. Dodge and John Catlin 
were chosen treasurer and secretary. Col. Slaughter 
was one of the most active members, and the requisite 
steps devolving upon the board were fulfilled. Re- 
gents were appointed, and an act was passed specifi- 
cally incorporating the ^University, immediately after 
the inauguration of the state government, in 1848. 

The first board consisted of John Bannister, Hiram 
5 



QQ HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Barber, Alex. L. Collins, Julius T. Clark, Henry 
Bryan, Edw. Y. "Whiton, John H. Rountree, Eleazer 
Root, Simeon Mills, Rufus King, Thos. W. Sutlier- 
land and Cyrus Woodman. Four of tlie members 
were nominated for six years, and the others were ap- 
pointed, four for four years and four for two only; 
their successors thereafter to hold office for six years. 
The present site of the University was purchased from 
Mr. Aaron Yanderpool of 'New York, on the 17th of 
October, 1848, subject to the approval of the legisla- 
ture; and a building in the village of Madison, erected 
as a private venture for the purposes of an academy, 
having been tendered to the regents, rent free, by the 
citizens, it was determined to open the " department 
of science, literature, and the arts," by means of a 
preparatory school, on the first Monday in February, 
1849, under the superintendence of Prof. John W. 
Sterling. The next step was the election of John H. 
Lathrop, LL. D., as chancellor of the University, at a \ 
salary not to exceed $2,000. The preparatory school 
was opened at the time named, with twenty pupils 
under Professor Sterling and Chancellor Lathrop. 
The cabinet of natural history was formed by Horace 
A. Tenney, who rendered his services as agent free of 
cost, and gave excellent aid to the institution at all 
times. 

The formal inauguration of the chancellor took 
place on the 16th of January, 1850, and buildings 
were erected, the north dormitory in the following 
year and the south dormitory in 1854, from the in- 



THE STATE UNIVERSITY. 67 

come of tlie University fund. In the same year the 
first class, consisting of Levi M. Booth and Chas. T. 
Wakeley, graduated. 

The intention of congress in granting a liberal en- 
dowment of public lands to the University was to a 
great extent defeated by manipulations in the legis- 
lature, under which the lands were appraised at very 
inadequate prices, and so passed into the hands of 
speculators and others, who became the recipients of 
advantages which should permanently have assisted 
the intellectual culture of the community. Under 
such injurious action on the part of honorable mem- 
bers, some of the best lands in the state were pre- 
empted, or otherwise obtained, at less than one-fourth 
of their actual value, and the authorities of the Uni- 
versity were powerless to defend the interests entrust- 
ed to their charge. The fund necessary for Univer- 
sity purposes being thus rendered inadequate, con- 
gress was once more approached, and mainly in con- 
sequence of the exertions of Gen. Simeon Mills, a 
further grant of seventy-two sections was obtained. Mr. 
Tenney, already favorably known by his services, se- 
lected the lands thus given for the purposes of learn- 
ing. The selections made by Mr. Tenney were among 
the choicest lands in the state, and although there was 
some delay in reporting them at "Washington, in con- 
sequence of which private j)arties j^rocured many of 
the best, other lands fully equal were eventually pro- 
cured. Once more the legislature using its powers 
defeated the express design of the endowment, by ap- 



68 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

praising the picked lands of the state at $3.00 per 
acre, reducing a property which was well worth 
$500,000 to a selling valne of only $138,240. Even 
then the designs of the manipulators were not ex- 
hausted, as it was found that by pushing the lands into 
sale by auction, away from the centers of population, 
still lower prices could be made to rule, and yet the 
representations made by the institution were without 
avail. Even worse, during the summer session of 1854: 
a bill was hurried through one house, and came very 
near j^assing the other, under which all the lands 
sold, and to be sold, in the interests of the State Uni- 
versity, some of which ranged as high as $30.00 per 
acre in value in open market, should be subject to 
patent at $1.25, and that all moneys already paid in 
excess of that amount should be refunded. A propo- 
sition more shameful was never submitted to a legis- 
lature; but Mr. Tenney, then reporting in the house, 
and a number of members acting with him, by whom 
he was called upon for a statement, only succeeded in 
defeating the nefarious project by two votes. Two 
purposes were served by the members who voted for 
the despoilment of the University: one, the enrich- 
ment of individual speculators, and the other and 
more justifiable design was the encouragement of 
immigration. Precisely similar tactics were pursued 
when the Agricultural College act was passed by 
congress in 1862; but no good purpose can be served 
by recapitulating discreditable details. The Eegents 
of the University faithfully discharged their duties 



THE STATE UNIVERSITY. 69 

in the premises, and at lengtli, in 1872, procured the 
passage of an act granting from the state a sum of 
$10,000 per annum, as compensation to the Univer- 
sity. That amount was not an equivalent for the loss, 
but it was something to have procured a recognition 
of the principle, that the lands granted by the federal 
government for purposes of education, should not have 
been sacrificed in pursuance of personal gain, or in 
carrying out schemes to promote immigration, in the 
lower interests of the territory and state. 

The le«:islature acted for some considerable time 
as though the funds accruing from the sales of land 
granted for the University by congress were, in fact, 
taxes levied upon the state, and in consequence there 
were dark days and great causes for discontent among 
the- promoters of learning in this city; but thanks to 
a more enlightened spirit wdiich now prevails among 
the directors of the j)ress of the state, and in the main, 
among the people at large, a better understanding has. 
been reached. The fact that the University was doing 
its best under the disadvantages incidental to want 
of funds, during the dark and troubled times, is now 
admitted on all hands; and it is too ap2>arent to re- 
quire comment, that the cause of that poverty con- 
sisted in the breach of trust of which legislators were 
guilty. A bill aiming at the reorganization of the 
University was introduced, and came near passing 
both houses of the legislature in 1858. The chan- 
cellor of the institution, taking up the leading ideas 
of that measure, carried out most of the proposed al- 



70 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

terations during tlie same year, witli tlie concurrence 
of tlie board of regents. Chancellor Lathrop sug- 
gested the several changes apparently demanded by 
the public, and in j)ursuance of the change, resigned 
his position as chancellor, which was afterwards filled 
by Henry Barnard, LL, D., who united therewith the 
duties of professor of normal instruction. Chancellor 
Lathrop was elected professor of ethical and political 
science, but he subsequently resigned his office, and 
w^as reelected to the position he had previously filled 
as president of the University of Missouri. Beyond 
doubt, that gentleman fell a sacrifice to circum- 
stances not properly chargeable to himself; but his 
retirement, and the change of administration conse- 
quent thereupon, permitted the complete establish- 
ment of a good understanding between the people 
and their most valuable institution. The new scheme 
originated by the retiring chancellor was, in effect, a 
full recognition of the right of the people to control 
the University, and it devolved upon them the fullest 
share of responsibility. 

Chancellor Barnard was unable to attend to the 
duties to which he had been called, thus the scheme 
which was to have united the University with the 
normal school system of the state failed completely. 
Eventually, in consequence of continued ill health, his 
resignation was accepted in January, 1861. The civil 
war, and the stress upon every department of the state, 
joined to the diminution of the number of students, 
rendered a reduction of expenditures inevitable. Prof. 



THE STATE UNIVERSITY. 71 

Jolm W. Sterling was made dean of the faculty, with 
the powers of chancellor, and schemes of retrenchment 
were adopted which enabled the University to continue 
its operations, without asking aid from the legislature, 
during the war. The University was largely repre- 
sented in the army, and a military company was 
formed among the students, which has eventuated in 
the establishment of a military department, giving 
effect to an excellent suggestion made to the re- 
gents by the faculty. The drill undertaken to secure 
military efficiency has conferred mental as w^ell as 
physical vigor. In the year 1864:, all the class was in 
the field, and for the first time during ten years, there 
was no commencement. 

A normal department was opened in 1863, under 
the care of Prof. C. H. Allen, and the result was in every 
way satisfactory. The apprehension commonly ex- 
pressed, that the introduction of ladies would lower the 
standard of culture, has been proved groundless. Prof. 
Pickard succeeded to the control of that department 
in 1866, when the " female college " was established, 
which continued until 1873, since which time all de- 
partments of the University have very properly been 
thrown open to both sexes, without those invidious 
distinctions, which too long have evidenced the want 
of genuine culture among men. 

Gifts made to the institution bv c^enerous citizens, 
have done much to increase its efficiency. Gov. Jas. 
T. Lewis made a donation to enable the board of 
regents to bestow an annual prize. The amount was 



72 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

only $200, but the regents having invested the fund, 
were enabled in June, 1874, to offer a prize of §20, 
which sum is to be awarded every year, under the 
name of " the Lewis prize," to the writer of the best 
essay, received in the competition of that year. The 
Scandinavian library, known as "" Mimers library," 
was a contribution from private individuals in 1868, 
through the agency of Prof. R. B. Anderson. The col- 
lection now aggregates about one thousand volumes of 
Scandinavian literature, and its value can hardly be 
stated. The world-famous Ole Bull was induced by 
Mr. Anderson to increase the library fund by giving 
a concert in the assembly chamber, and the sum thus 
obtained was very advantageously expended in IS^or- 
way by the professor, who made a voyage thither in 
1872 for the purpose, and procured at the same time 
valuable contributions from some of the ablest pro- 
fessors and most distinguished Norwegian scliolars. 
The books obtained by the several means indicated 
render the Scandinavian library one of the best in the 
United States. The " Johnson student's aid fund " 
was in part due to the same agency. The sum given 
by the Hon. John A. Johnson, some time senator for 
this district, is $5,000, the interest of which is to be 
applied from the time of the donation, 1876, until the 
end of the present century, to assist indigent Scandi- 
navian students, with sums not to exceed $50 per an- 
num in any individual case, nor to aggregate more 
than $200 in the aid afforded to one person ; with this 
further proviso, that in every case the student assisted 



74 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

shall understand that the advance is a loan, and not a 
gift, and that whenever it may be in his power, he 
shall be expected to re^aj the sum to the fund, to in- 
crease its efficiency for future operations. On and 
after the end of this century the fund will be available 
for all students, irrespective of nationality, on pre- 
cisely similar terms. Clearly, the object of the donor 
is to break down whatever barriers may at present ex- 
ist, to the complete unification of the I^orse element 
in our j)opulation with the great body of the peoj^le, 
made u^^ of all the nations of the world. It would be 
difficult to imagine a form in which enlightened mu- 
nificence can more elegantly express itself, than by 
such contributions to the improvement of the State 
University, and it is gratifying to observe that other 
persons are preparing to follow in the path thus nobly 
indicated. Most of the universities and scholastic in- 
stitutions in Euroj)e have been enriched by just such 
acts of individual munificence, generally by way of 
bequests, taking eff*ect upon the death of the donor. 
The state bestowed upon the University the building 
which had been occupied as the soldiers' orphans 
home, with the intention that it should be used as the 
location for a medical school or department; but for 
many reasons it was found inexpedient to carry out 
that design, and the regents having memorialized 
the legislature to that eftect, have been permitted to 
sell the structure and grounds for ^18,000. The i^or- 
wegians, who have made the purchase, will establish 
an academy and theological seminary in the building, 



THE STATE TNIVERSITT. 75 

wliicL. will thus become a considerable addition to tlie 
educational facilities in Madison. 

Keturning now from a prolonged digression on the 
subject of gifts, to resume the narrative temporarily 
broken, we may say, tliat in June, 1865, the war 
having come to an end, it was thought advisable to 
reorganize the State University, but in consequence 
of an offer of the chancellorship having been declined, 
Prof. Sterling continued in his position until the 
following year. The increase of students and the 
improving asj^ect of affairs generally, so far as the 
University was concerned, led to a reconstruction, 
which was aided by a vacation of all the chairs in 
1866, whereupon Pres. Paul A. Chadbourne was called 
to the management of the University from the agricul- 
tural college of Massachusetts. Prof. Sterling alone, 
of all the old faculty, was retained and reelected. 

The change made in 1866 entitled the University 
to the advantages accruing under the act of congress, 
which granted lands for agricultural colleges. The 
alterations necessary were embodied in an act, which 
was approved on the 12th of April, 1866, and there- 
upon the county of Dane issued bonds to the amount of 
$40,000 for the purchase of lands for an experimental 
farm contiguous to the university grounds. The 
requisite funds were provided and the farm procured, 
but two professors in turn declined the nomination 
as president, and the members of the old faculty were 
recalled for another year. After certain amendments 
had been made in the regulations, as to the several 



76 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

departments being open to both sexes on precisely 
similar terms, Prof. Chadbourne accepted the presi- 
dency in 1867, and the work of reconstruction pro- 
ceeded. 

Since that time, the state has pursued a more liberal 
and enlightened policy towards the University. The 
educational power of the institution has been felt in 
the community, in the presence and force of men 
trained therein, or in kindred establishments, and now 
editing the leading journals of the state, or filling 
other responsible representative positions. The sec- 
retary of state, in his report for 1866, recognized the 
fact, that "Wisconsin had not approjDriated one dollar 
toward the support of the University, but had absorbed 
from the endowment given by the general govern-/ 
ment, sums aggregating more than $10,000, in the 
form of charges for taking care of the lands, besides 
reducing the vahie of the property in question, so 
that the fund arising from the interest had decreased 
$7,000 per annum in less than two years. The action 
of Dane county in affording substantial help was 
speedily followed by compensatory measures in the 
legislature. In the year 1867, an appropriation of 
$7,303.76 per annum was made for a term of ten 
years, and it was supposed that a like amount would 
be granted in perpetuity as an act of simple justice; 
but, as will be seen, a much more generous arrange- 
ment has been effected. The charge unwisely levied 
by the state upon the University, property for taking 
care of its lands, was at the same time abandoned. 



THE STATE rNIVEKSITT. 77 

Three years later, in 1870, a sum of $50,000 was 
appropriated to erect a female college, tliat being the 
first snm actually granted by "Wisconsin in aid of her 
own University. In the year 1875, upon proper repre- 
sentations as to the necessity for additional buildings, 
the legislature appropriated $80,000 to enable the 
regents to proceed with the erection of Science Hall, 
now rapidly nearing completion; and still later, dur- 
ing the present year, an act has been passed repealing 
all other measures of appropriation touching the 
revenues of the institution, and giving, by way of 
liberal acquittance for every error in the past, an 
annual tax of one- tenth of a mill on the dollar, on the 
valuation of the state, upon the condition, that from 
and after July, 1876, all tuition shall be free to every 
citizen of Wisconsin. The line of policy thus indi- 
cated, places the State University on a sound basis, 
and will not fail to establish the character of our 
people thoughout the union. The struggle for life 
has ended, and the munificence of the legislature, 
expressing the will of the community, will materially 
aid in developing the resources of the state. The line 
of conduct pursued in the beginning was an aberra- 
tion, such as we are not likely to see repeated. 

A desire to narrate in the proper order, and in a 
connected way, the several items of financial policy 
which, since 1866, have characterized the legislature, 
has led to a deviation from the straight course in de- 
scribing the steps by which the regents and the faculty 
have discharged their duties; but allowances can be 



78 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

made for tliat offense in tlie presence of sncli ad- 
mirable provocation. There will be no further need 
to break the continuity of the narrative. 

The IJnivereitj has now a department of engineer- 
ing and military tactics, to which has been added a 
department of civil and mechanical engineering and 
military science. Mining, metallurgy and engineer- 
in 2: as connected with mines, have also received atten- 
tion; and the department of agriculture, a branch 
of training second to none in importance, is very 
slowly advancing in appreciation as well among the 
people as in the minds of the regents. Efforts have 
been made to render this branch of education effective, 
but up to the present time there have been no agricul- 
tural students. The Law Department, under the able 
Dean of the Faculty, Prof. J. H. Carpenter, aided by 
the best authorities in the state, deserves the very 
highest encomiums. 

President Chadbourne's labors, under the recon- 
structed board, and the better tone of public opinion, 
gave an impetus to educational effort. The University 
became more worthy of support, a better exponent of 
scientific culture; and the leading minds in the com- 
munity recognized its higher usefulness. The in- 
crease of students consequent upon those improve- 
ments, rendered additional buildings necessary, and 
the want has been in part supplied, but the require- 
ments of the institution will continue to- increase 
with the growing importance of the community. 
There cannot be finality in supplying the wants of an 



THE STATE TJNIVEKSITY. Id 

intellectual people wliose numbers and demands in 
the realm of knowledge are daily expanding. Already 
there are murmurs because of the want of an ob- 
servatory and astronomical instruments. There can 
be no question that these requirements will be sup- 
plied. 

President Chadbourne was obliged to retire in con- 
sequence of ill health in 1870, and his place was tem- 
porarily suj)plied by Yice President Sterling, during 
whose incumbency, at first as a matter of necessity, 
and afterwards as a matter of principle, young women 
were admitted to recite with any of the classes. The 
change has proved beneficial. President Twombly, 
D. D., w^as elected in ISTl, and continued in ofiice 
until 187-1, when President Bascom, LL. D., D. D., 
was called to the work. Under the two officers last 
named in succession, but more especially under Presi- 
dent Bascom, the institution has grown in usefulness 
and in public favor, and there is no reason to doubt 
that the good understanding, fully established, will 
be maintained. 

The income of the University from all sources, now 
amounts to about §80,000 per annum, and with the 
growth of the state generally, the prosperity of the 
institution wdll steadily keep pace. Henceforth there 
will be no reason why every young man and young 
woman in Wisconsin, having an ambition to possess 
the advantages of complete training, should not culti- 
vate the powers with which God has blessed them, in 
the development of their intellectual faculties, under 



80 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

the sanctions of religion, and with all the benefits ac- 
cruing from well applied moral force. 

President Bascom is steadily and very wisely reduc- 
ing the amount of preparatory work, which was at first 
forced upon the University, and he states that in car- 
rying out that reform, he is largely assisted by the 
High School Law prepared by Professor Searing, the 
state superintendent of public instruction, whose ex- 
pei'ience in the work of tuition and training enabled 
him to initiate a measure, which wdll grow in favor 
continually, so far as its main features are concerned. 
The University and the high schools of the state will 
give to "Wisconsin in the mass a much higher intel- 
lectual status than was possessed by Athens, even in 
its palmiest days; but the work that has been accom- 
plished must be accepted as only an indication of 
the progress yet to be achieved. The men and women 
engaged in the task have won popular appreciation 
and regard, without which no good result could be 
hoped for; and with that helpful condition attained, 
everything is possible. 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 81 



CHAPTEE Y. 

STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

The state library dates from the earliest days of our 
existence as a territorial government, tlie first pur- 
chase of books having been made in 1837, since 
which time the collection has been largely increased. 
The State Historical Society was organized on the 
30th of January, 1849, and its treasures now com- 
prise by far the best collection of materials for north- 
western history that can be found anywhere in this 
western country. There was at one time a superior 
collection in Chicago, but the great fire unfortunately 
destroyed that, among other priceless treasures. The 
organization of the society was suggested in the 
Mineral Point Democrat of October 22, 1845, by 
Chauncy C. Britt, but notwithstanding the support 
given to the project by the whole of the press, it was 
not found possible to carry it into effect until the 
date mentioned, more than three years later. Even 
then it was not a vigorous existence, upon which the 
association entered. Events called off the attention 
of some, sickness and misfortune impeded others, 
and the act of incorporation was not procured until 
March, 1853, when there were not fifty volumes in the 
library. In the month of January following, a com- 



82 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

plete reorganization having been effected, a vote of 
$500 per annnm was subsequently procured from the 
legislature to assist in attaining the objects aimed at 
by the promoters ; and the first annual report for the 
year 1854 showed very considerable progress. There 
were already more than one thousand volumes in the 
library and promises of assistance and coo23eration 
had been received from numerous societies on this 
continent and in Europe, as well as from American 
authors whose names are to-day more honorable to 
the nation than our material riches. Collections of 
autographs, portraits, and life sized pictures had al- 
ready been commenced, including mementoes of our 
worthiest men, and those lines of eftbrt have been 
persevered in with great success to the present time, 
until the gallery of the Historical Society has become 
singularly complete. With the report for 1854 were 
presented many valuable and interesting documents 
forming parts of the contemporary and more remote 
history of the northwest, in a striking way illus- 
trating the importance of the society. One paper was 
a translation from the French, setting forth the policy 
which the soldiery of that nation should pursue to- 
ward the Chippewas and Foxes; another an English 
record of the days when the British forces had taken 
possession of Green Bay and other frontier posts, 
soon after the reduction of Canada by the English, 
and a very interesting appendix consisted of Jas. W. 
Biddle's recollections of Green Bay in 1816-17, about 
the time that this country really passed under Amer- 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 83 

ican rule. The discriminating reader is of course 
aware that although the British should have surren- 
dered this country in 1783, there were excuses made 
for the retention of Detroit and other posts until 
Jay's treaty was made, and that even after that date 
it was not until the end of the war of 1812 that the 
English authorities abandoned their manipulations 
with the Indians in this territory. The conduct of 
the Chij^pewas in hoisting the English flag at Sault 
Ste Marie in 1820, and defying Gov. Cass, w^as an 
event of still later occurrence, and the courage with 
which the old General tore down the insolent hunting, 
in the face of the Indians, won for him honest ad- 
miration. James Duane Doty, who was then travel 
ing in the suite of Gov. Cass, assisted in hoisting the 
Union colors, and thereby increased his favor with 
the governor of Michigan. The drain on the material 
resources of England, caused by long continued wars 
against I^apoleon, ended by the banishment of that 
ruler to St. Helena in 1815-16, made it inexpedient 
for the nation to continue its system of annuities to 
Tomah and the Menomonees, as well as to other In- 
dian allies. The change was announced in 1817, and 
Mr. Biddle's recollections embrace that period and 
event, as well as much other matter that deserves re- 
capitulation. The customs of Green Bay as to lim- 
ited marriages, and transfers of marital engagements, 
among the voyageurs^ fur traders and their semi In- 
dian squaws, read like the records of South Sea 
Island life, with a few business like variations. There 



84: HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

had not been a priest in Green Bay for some time, 
and Judge Reaume, whose commission was said to 
have been given by Gen. Harrison, or earlier by the 
British, was for many years the only justice. Nobody 
could say when his authority first claimed recognition, 
but on the other hand nobody presumed to question 
its potency. "The Judge's old jack knife," sent by 
the constable, was a sufficient summons for any real 
or assumed offender, and the judgment of the bench 
could be influenced by a present, so that in one respect 
he resembled Lord Chancellor Bacon; but like the 
more celebrated man last mentioned, he was not with- 
out many excellent points, and his usefulness was be- 
yond question. Gov. Cass recognized the substantial 
worth of Judge Keaume and gave him an appoint- 
ment as associate justice, tow^ard the end of his 
career, after the organization of the territory of Mich- 
igan. 

The state will not readily comprehend how much is 
due to the labors of the Historical Society, and to its 
corresponding secretary, Lyman C. Draper, in the 
procurement and preservation of the treasures amassed 
by the society; but the Union and the reading world 
will some day recognize their worth, and this city can- 
not fail to reap honor in having been the birthplace 
of the institution. 

Col. "Whittlesey's "Tour Through "Wisconsin in 
1832," written in 1838, gives a vivid and life-like 
description of the Black Hawk War, but our space 
will not -allow of such extracts as might be desired, 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 85 

and it is to be hoped that some person favored hj tlie 
society, will embody in a few volumes the choicer mat- 
ter in its priceless collection. For the present it is 
impossible even to enumerate the contributions that 
he before us, and it is necessary to confine ourselves 
to a bare mention of only a few of the chief items of 
interest. Major H. A. Tenney, whose services to the 
community in many ways have been beyond praise, 
has given an admirable ^r^c^/^ of ^' Early Times in 
Wisconsin," written in this city in 1849, after he had 
succeeded in buttonholing Col. Erigham, and had 
collated the information thus obtained, with knowl- 
edge from innumerable other sources. The first settler 
m Dane county was not inclined to write his recollec- 
tions, but in his manly and genial way he was 
induced to talk of his early experiences, and currente 
calamo, Major Tenney converted his veracious words 
into history, which must always be the foundation of 
Wisconsin's records. 

The second annual report showed that the Histori- 
cal Society had increased its store by 1,065 volumes 
during the year 1855, and that in every other respect 
It was growing in usefulness, with experience. The 
picture gallery then consisted of twenty-five paintings, 
besides which the likenesses of numbers of local and 
national celebrities had been promised as additions to 
the collection. ^ less than forty-seven portraits, 
chiefly of pioneers and friends of Wisconsin, had then 
been engaged, nearly all of which were afterwards 
supplied. ^Ye are almost entirely at a loss in general 



86 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

history, wlien we attempt to recall tlie features of 
tlionsands of men and women with whose deeds the 
world may be said to be familiar, yet " the counter- 
feit presentment" is often the best commentary upon 
the actual career of a person. Could we only be sure 
as to which of the several pictures, busts and casts, 
said to have been made at various times and places, 
of the player and poet, "William Shakspere, was really 
taken from his features, in life or in death, it would 
be much easier to pronounce upon the question 
whether the wool-comber's son, who married Anne 
Hathaway, was truly the writer of the plays and son- 
nets that bear his name, or only the stalking horse of 
a still greater personage, the founder of our modern 
system of investigation. The pictures then in the gal- 
lery of the society were particularized, and where pos- 
sible and necessary, as in the case of Black Hawk, the 
pro^^het, and in other such, certified to by the then 
librarian. Prof. S. H. Carpenter, in an excellent report 
on his particular branch of the society's possessions. 
The library has gone on increasing in every feature 
with accelerating rapidity every year, so that in 1857 
the volumes aggregated 3,122, exclusive of pamphlets 
and unbound newspapers ; in the year following, 4,116; 
in 1862 there were 14,400 volumes ; in 1866, when the 
change was made from the basement of the Baptist 
Church to the suite of rooms in the capitol noAV occu- 
pied, there were 21,000 volumes and documents ; in 
1868, the Tank Library donation added 4,812 volumes, 
and the number of books, bound and unbound, had 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 87 

increased to 31,505, wliicli in 1872, wlien the last pub- 
lication appeared, showed a total of 50,530. The sup- 
plementary catalogue, in August, 1875, showed a fur- 
ther exj)ansion to 65,000, and the gratifying increment 
goes on with continuous energy. 

There are now in the galleries more than one hun- 
dred oil paintings of noteworthy men, a feature of 
surpassing value. The cabinet of pre-histoi'ic relics 
contains nearly ten thousand specimens of the tools, 
ornaments and weapons of the stone age, in many re- 
spects second to none in the world. The copper era 
is illustrated by even a still more valuable collection, 
which has latterly been transferred to the Centennial 
Exj)Osition in Philadelpliia, an assemblage of celts, 
spearheads and knives, in unalloyed copper, such as all 
Europe cannot equal. The maps and other valuables 
which are preserved in this institution would alone 
repay all the outlay that the state has incurred in sup- 
porting tlie invaluable movement, with which it is an 
honor to have been associated, as even the humblest 
pains-taking assistant. 

Tlie Tank collection above mentioned deserves more 
detailed notice. One of the earliest pioneers in Wis- 
consin was Otto Tank, wliose widow, the daughter of 
a clergyman in Zeist, in Holland, inherited from her 
father his exceedingly choice collection of works, 
amounting to more than 5,000, inclusive of pamphlets, 
and this great treasure was by Mrs. Tank fi*eely given 
to the State ITistorical Society, the cost of removal 
from Holland to this country being covered by a legis- 



HISTORY OF MADISON". 



lative approi^riation. In tlie next year a full set of 
Patent Office Eeports, wliicli cost the donors no less 
than §12,500 gold, and which covers the whole range 
of invention since the year 1617, the year following 
the deaths of Shakspere and Cervantes, w^ere presented 
to the Historical Society by the British government, 
through the intervention of the Hon. Charles Francis 
Adams, late minister to the court of St. James. The 
favor thus conferred does not end with the donation 
named, as the society will continue to receive the 
series of publications from the Patent Office in Lon- 
don, at the rate of about one hundred volumes per 
year, and thus the inventive genius of this state will 
continue to be stimulated by the opportunity at all 
times to inspect what has been accomplished and at- 
tempted, and what is still within the range of tenta- 
tive effort among our brethren on the other side of 
the Atlantic. Like donations may be expected from 
every other European government, w^hen tlie purposes 
of the institution are made known in the proper 
quarters. 

To continue such an enumeration would prove tedi- 
ous to the average reader, and in consequence, we refer 
our friends for more com^^lete details to the reports 
and catalogues of the society, and the rooms in the 
state capitol, which already are too small to do justice 
to an always increasing literary, archaic and artistic 
treasure. Mr. Draper has proved himself, in an excep- 
tional degree, " the right man in the right place," one 
of those whose deeds will live after them, and to him 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 



more than to any other individual, the state and this 
city owe the wonderful g-rowth which we have utterly 
failed to chronicle according to its merits. Tliose who 
have been associated with him best know his peculiar 
fitness for the task to which his life has been devoted^ 
and none of them will grudge the patient and modest 
w^orker the credit to which he is honestly entitled. 
His name has been the ojpen sesame to numerous col- 
lections, and to innumerable pockets, from which the 
resources of the society have been enriched, and his 
zeal has contributed to induce the legislature to assist 
the movement by appropriations which, without great 
economy, must still have been wholly inadecxuate, 
while his example has induced hundreds to become 
willing laborers in the good cause. 

The lover of books cannot pas« from such an admir- 
able collection without pausing for a moment to gossip 
about some few of the immortals, whose genius must 
shine upon the printed page forever, as the stars be- 
gem the firmament. Said one of the vulgar rich, who 
had built for himself a mansion, "Send me enouo-h 
books, handsomely bound, to fill a library." That 
w^as " the be all and the end all " of his care, or taste, 
in the matter, the bindings in Eussia leather being 
of greater moment than the contents, or even, may be, 
the authors' names. ISTot in that spirit would James 
Eussel Lowell feast on the lettered wealth wdth which 
the world grows truly rich. Not so will any loving 
soul approach literature, the highest gift of man to 
man. Said Wordsworth: 



90 HISTORY OF 3kIADIS0N. 

** Books, we know, 
Are a substantial world, both pure and good; 
Round these, with tendrils strong- as flesh and blood, 
Our pastime, and our happmess will gTOW." 

Says Lowell: ^' There is to us a sacreclness in a book, 

we live over again tlie author's lonely labors, 

and tremulous hopes; we see him. ...... .doubtfully 

entering the Mermaid, or the Devil Tavern, or the 
coffee house of Will, or Button, blushing under the 
eye of Ben Jonson, or Dryden, or Addison, as if they 
must needs know him for the author;" as though he 
might expect to rest, like Shakspere, 

'* Under a star-y-pomted pyramid, 
Dear son of memory, great heir of fame." 

How high was the hope of Milton when he essayed 
the calling of an author: "By labor and intent study 
— which I take to be my portion in this life — joined 
with the strong propensity of nature, I might perhaps 
leave something so written, to after times, as they 
should not wdllingly let it die." " The writer," said the 
blind bard, " ought himself to be a true poem." Then 
indeed there comes to be a sacred verity in his w^ords : 
" A good book is the precious life blood of a master 
spirit, embalmed and treasured uj), on purpose, to a 
life beyond life." Looking in this aspect upon the 
page which may instruct the world for a millennial 
term, as it were, creating " Brave men and worthy 
patriots, dear to God, and famous to all ages," there 
is no delight greater than to find some congenial wor- 



STxiTE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 91 

shipper who will talk or listen while the merits of the 
masters are expounded, not as they really are, but as 
our slowly expanding powers enable us to see them, 
the world's teachers, the intellectual leaders of the 
race. 

Before us, on the desk, lie the volumes of Halli- 
welFs Shakspere, a costly and rare luxury, originally 
published at $800 per coj^y, beyond our reach in any 
other way. The Historical Society enables us to see 
all that is knoAvn about the man with whom the 
greatest treasure of poetry on this earth is associated. 
Here are fao similes of his writing, and of his fath- 
er's mark. The deeds and acquittances, and unhap- 
pily, also the writs, which tell of the poverty that 
fell upon the poet's home. Here are figured, as 
though in very fact, the original documents as they 
were presented to his eyes, letters and memoranda in 
which Shakspere and his immediate surroundings 
moved, in their daily lives. They " fret and strut 
their hour upon the stage," and we see the homes in 
which their pleasures and anxieties arrived at frui- 
tion. Here Anne Hathaway was w^ooed and w^on. 
There is the rustic bridge on which mayhap the lovers 
murmured fond hopes, scarce louder than the music 
of the stream, but such as linked heart to heart for 
all eternity, while each soul in the sweet oblivious- 
ness of youth — 

" Mistook the rustic murmur of their woods, 
For the big waves, that echo round the world." 



92 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Turning now from tlie man and the cottage in 
wliicli lie saw the light, shutting out his financial 
griefs and successes, banishing John Shakspere and 
Mary Arden, forgetting Henley street, Stratford, and 
the family of Lucy, painfully associated with his 
youthful fortune, we are in London, and the actor is 
before us, in the old Globe theatre, where he learned 
how shamefully the average player can mar the best 
passage, by an ill-mouthed sentence, where he gave 
force to his advice to the players, by such deliverance 
as did, indeed, " Suit the action to the word, and the 
word to the action, with this special observance, that 
you o'erstep not the modesty of nature." His plays 
are being acted, and standing in the pit among the 
commonalty, for which they have paid their penny, 
every man, day after day, it is possible to forget the 
fatigues incident to the position, while " The Tem- 
pest" is presented, without the charms of modern 
scenery and the upholsterer's art. The genius of 
winged words enchains us to the spot, until the end, 
when we reluctantly recall his own language as our 
dismissal — 

" Our revels now are ended. These, our actors, 
As I foretold you, were aU spirits, and 
Are melted into air, into thin air; 
And, like the baseless fabric of tliis vision, 
Tlie cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces, 
The solemn temples, the great globe itself, 
Yea, all which it mherit, shall dissolve. 
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, 
Leave not a rack beliuid. We are such stuff 



STATE niSTORICAL SOCIETY. 93 

As dreams are made on; and our little life 
Is rounded with a sleep." 

Puritan are we, to our spinal marrow, and tlie 
player is not suspected of favoring our " ism," but 
again and yet again we pervade the enclosure, in 
which his works are rendered. Sarcasms grate upon 
our ears, because of the nonconforming spirit with 
which we are imbued, and the " unclean knight " 
John Fal staff is, we know, presented as a play upon 
the peculiarities of the Lollard, Sir John Oldcastle, 
through whom those who would carry religious re- 
form too far may be impaled; but even in the wild- 
est license of his merriment, who cannot see that 
there is a love for Falstaif pervading every line of 
the portraiture. Shakspere w^as a reformer in his 
soul. Cassio, when he is betrayed by "Mine An- 
cient " into drunkenness in the Isle of Cyprus, shows 
under the film of his lovable nature, the Puritan in 
his prayer. The new philosophy is in the play- 
wa-ight, not the old dry theology. Within his subtle 
expression there is a breadth and profundity which 
shall convey the deepest meaning to unnumbered 
generations. Othello will forever unfold his simple 
manhood — 

" Not easily jealous, but being wrought 
Perplexed in the extreme." 

And Hamlet unveil his endless dubitations, wander- 
ing on the verge of madness, until the purpose of his 



94 HISTORY OF MADISOX. 

life is lost. In liim, better tlian in any other, can we 
see the mind — 

" SicMiecl o'er with the pale cast of thought; 
And enterprises of great pith and moment, 
With this regard their cmTents tmii awry, 
And lose the name of action." 

Eomeo will still come npon the scene, and Shak- 
spere with his perfect face and form, if some tradi- 
tions can be relied on, may well have been that 
lover, making immortal pleas for the affection of a 
lady, whose — 

" Beauty hangs upon the cheek of night, 
Like a rich jewel m an Ethiop's ear." 

The " sweet sorrow " of that parting will never die 
out of the memory of the race. Yet while the audi- 
ence pauses to rest, the demon of ill-applied ambition 
is on the stage. Macbeth, the story of whose life, in 
very truth, is warped by the genius of the poet to 
the doing of murders that were never done, and whom 
we see uttering the agony of a conscience-smitten 
soul, 

" Methought I heard a voice cry: ' Sleep no more; 
Macbeth does murder sleep,' the innocent sleep; 
Sleep that knits up the ravelFd sleeve of care 
The death of each day's life, sore labor's bath. 
Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course." 

But the play has ended. Antony, Caesar, Brutus, 
call to us in vain; no human power can follow the 



STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 95 

beck of this magician through all his charm. " The 
cry is still thej come;" Shylock demanding his 
pound of flesh, and the gentle Portia defeating him 
with woman's wit, when her imperishable plea for 
mercy has been placed upon the record in vain; Lear 
moans to the midnight storm, as he sallies forth in 
his agony of sorrow. 

*' Blow, blow, thou wiiitiy wind, 
Thou art not so uuldnd 
As man's ingi^atitude." 

And we see " a man more sinned against than sin- 
ning; " 

" A poor, infirm, weak and despised old man; " 

Broken to worse than the bitterness of death by 
the experience, 

** How sharper than a serpent's tooth, it is 
To have a thankless chUd." 

The rage of Coriolanus who " banished Eome " and 
*' Fluttered the dovecotes in Corioh; " 

The cynic hate of Timon; the noble sorrow of Wolsey 
who had realized 

"How wretched 
Is that poor man, that hangs on prince's favors; 
There is betwixt that smile we would aspire to, 
That sweet aspect of princes, and their niin, 
More pangs and fears than wars or women have; 
And when he falls, he falls Kke Lucifer, 
Never to hope again." 



96 



HISTORY OF MADISOK. 



The melanclioly Jacques, tlie moody Touchstone, 
the lovely Eosalind, Puck, Ariel, Titania, the Hen- 
ry's, Faulconbridge, distorted Eichard and a myriad 
others, born or fashioned from his brain, can never 
live for us upon the boards that Shakspere trod, but 
they are here within these volumes, to be called forth 
whenever sympathetic eyes shall break the magic of 
their tomb and bring them back to sunlight. Gossip 
about the immortals, indeed; when, where, and how? 
Time and space forbid. ^Ye have glanced but at one 
book, and the floods of memory well forth from every 
crevice of the brain, until the subject is "taboo," and 
we must turn in haste to other themes. 

The state library has been already named, as its 
chronological right demanded, seeing that it came 
into being before the capitol was planned. Apart 
from that feature, it is of great merit as a law library, 
hardly second to any in the west, and the complete- 
ness of the collection long since suggested to the 
managers the transfer of all its miscellaneous works 
to the shelves of the Historical Society. The cour- 
tesy of the librarian, the perfect order prevailing in 
the department, and the extensive as well as excellent 
assortment of works, combine to render the state 
library, in every sense, an honor to its promoters and 
to this city. The location occupied by this depart- 
ment in the capitol, adjoining the supreme court and 
the chambers of the legislature, renders it easy of 
access to all who are concerned in its advantages. 
The city library, in City Hall, and the library at 



STATE HISTOEICAL SOCIETY. 97 

tlie University, deserve more lengthened notice than 
our space will permit, seeing that the witchery of 
books would infallibly cause an overrunning of our 
limits, " contrary to the statute thereunto made and 
provided." Before ending this chapter, it becomes 
our imperative, as well as our pleasant duty, to ac- 
knowledge the manifold kindnesses of Librarian D. 
S. Durrie, wdiose own labors as a writer have made 
him apt to render aid to every one toiling with pen 
or pencil. His merits need no eulogy, but this word 
of recognition is due to ourselves. 



98 HISTORY OF MADISON. 



CHAPTEK yi. 

BENCH AND BAR. 

Naughty people, long ago, in their desire to be 
smart, dubbed the lawyers "The Devil's Brigade;" 
but like their commander, the brethren of the long 
robe are not nearly so black as they are painted. Those 
who have lived in countries from which courts and 
lawyers are remote, or still worse, entirely wanting, 
know that the expounders of law are the defenders of 
property, liberty, and life. "Wisconsin has passed 
through that perilous era when there was no law but 
the will of the strongest. The " oldest inhabitant " 
can still rivet the attention of his hearers, by recount- 
ing the manifold pains and penalties incidental to that 
condition. Judge Reaume, with his cocked hat, regi- 
mental coat, broken English, and general appearance 
of caricature, dispensing eccentric justice, was better 
than the utter absence of organization, which might 
otherwise have prevailed in the Green Bay region, 
where "Wisconsin was first peopled. The Coutumes 
de Paris and an odd volume of Blackstone consti- 
tuted the law library and basis of operations for the 
old Judge, and his authority came, as it has been sur- 
mised, in the first place from George III; afterwards 
from General Harrison, as Governor of Indiana, and 



BENCH AND BAR. 99 

jet later from Governor Ciiss. The strangest customs 
of Paris conlcl hardly cover many of his decisions, 
contrary to all law, Avritten or nn^vl•itten ; but in any 
form, order is to be preferred to the horrors of anar- 
chy. Old Judge Reaume was tolerably wise in his 
way. Rich suitors, such men as the traders, who 
constituted a privileged class, and could afford the 
luxury of an appeal to the supreme court, at Detroit, 
seldom found cause of offense in his decisions. 

Some of the anecdotes concerning Reaume will not 
bear repetition, but enough remain to illustrate the 
curious compound ^j^hich invited the criticisms of the 
earlier settlers. Free love doctrines, and proposals 
for limited wedlock, which are now offered as novel- 
ties by Mrs. Victoria C. Woodhull, had long been in 
practice in the frontier country, where the voyageurs 
mated themselves by a kind of marriage, for six 
months or a year, with Winnebago and Menomonee 
women. Reaume was the high priest, and his cabin, 
the altar, where the postulants made their vows and 
offered up their fees. If a man who had contracted 
an engagement for a limited j)eriod presumed to con- 
tinue the union after the term had expired, the old 
Judge sent his constable, carrying his jack knife as 
the symbol of authority, to compel the parties to 
come before him, to renew their vows, their license 
and their payments. There is literally no new thing 
under the sun. Marriages for six months were some- 
times inconvenient, when the voyageitr was suddenly 
called to a distant field of operations, but the customs 



100 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

of the country in siicli, as well as in some other cases, 
permitted a transfer of liis domestic relations, proba- 
bly upon the j)ayment of a reduced amount. Reaume 
was equal to any such emergency, and the elasticity 
of an unwritten law must have facilitated his opera- 
tions. He was not the only authority in such matters. 
There was an Irishman named Campbell, later in the 
century, who was appointed by the U. S. government, 
a sub-Indian agent at Prairie du Chien, in 1809-1810, 
who depended upon ci^^il marriages for part of his 
emoluments. He would solemnize a contract of mar- 
riage for a hundred pounds of flour, that being then 
the Prairie du Chien currency, and should the parties 
grow dissatisfied with each other, he made no diffi- 
culty about granting a divorce upon the payment of 
two hundred pounds of the same commodity. 

There was law in the territory at that time, and 
there were courts also, but they were so distant and 
expensive that few dared indulge. Campbell had a 
dispute with a well known trader named Brisbois, as 
to the ownership of a heifer, and the parties being 
<jomparatively well to do, manned and provisioned 
their canoes for a voyage to Cahokia, to procure the 
services of lawyers, in the old French settlement, 
about ten miles from Belleville, on the Mississippi. 
The litigants settled the matter out of court, after ex- 
pending about $3,000 on a question of right, in which 
at first the value involved was only eight dollars. 
Who shall say that Campbell and Brisbois did not 
enjoy the blessings of civilization? Compared with 



BENCH AND BAK. 101 

such a luxury, the litigants who came before Judge 
Keaume to procure an adjustment were mercifully 
dealt with in being ordered, the first to supply the 
justice with a load of hay, and the second to bring him 
a load of firewood. Tradition says tliat the consta- 
ble was adjudged to pay the costs of the suit, but that 
portion of the record is not well sustained, and is 
.moreover improbable. 

Finney's Wisconsin Reports, contain by way of an 
introductory chapter, a very able digest of the con- 
dition of this country, as to law, law courts, and 
social customs, prioj to the establishment of genuine 
local government; and to that publication, the reader, 
who is desirous to pursue this subject in greater 
detail, is referred. Our limits only permit a brief 
glance at this very interesting matter. In the pre- 
ceding chapter reference has been made to the tardi- 
ness wdth which England relaxed her hold upon this 
western country long after her treaty obligations 
should have left the northwest subject to American 
laws and customs. Practically, it was not until after 
Waterloo, that we became hoiia fide masters of the 
soil, there was so wide a margin between cle jure and 
de facto. Even when that point had been reached, 
the law was too often a snare for the less wealthy, who 
could choose between acquiescence in a verdict, possi- 
bly unjust, within the jurisdiction of a local judge, of 
the Reaume or Campbell stamp, and a journey or 
voyage to Detroit, involving travel of from four to 
eight hundred miles, for self and witnesses, besides 



102 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

inmimerable expenses. During about seven months 
of tlie year, Detroit could be readied by the lalves, in 
vessels, ill fonnd, of about one Inindred tons burthen, 
but the rest of the year, a journey overland was alone 
possible, and the hardships and outlay therein in- 
volved were ruinous. 

Military control prevailed during part of the time, 
and when, as it sometimes happened, the commanding 
officer was wise and upright, the result gave but lit- 
tle to be complained about. Unhappily there are 
brave men whose knowledge is very limited, and 
whose instincts make but a poor palladium for the 
liberty of the subject. Still worse, there have -been 
men in command, whose tempers and whose propen- 
sities have made them, in their small way, worse ty- 
rants than Sardanapalus. There were at various times 
men of every different stamp holding sway in the sev- 
eral military posts in this territory, and the people 
fared well, or ill, as circumstances favored or op- 
pressed them. Judge Doty was obliged at one time, 
in 1827, after his location as an associate judge at 
Prairie du Ohien and at Green Bay, to land under the 
musket of a sentry, in obedience to an arbitrary com- 
mand, which would not allow any canoe to pass the 
post, without landing to report. Possibly there Avas 
something more than a report demanded, where tithes 
in kind could be levied. Thanks to Judge Doty, the 
rule was brought to a termination. Men had been 
subjected to corporal punishment upon the finding of 
military tribunals, or even upon the word of an 



BENCH AND BAR. 103 

officer, without a trial in any form. Military rule 
continued in operation within this territory until the 
year 1824, when Judge Doty entered upon his term of 
service. Courts and machinery of law were now 
brought comparatively to the doors of the people, 
but still the system was cumbrous in the extreme, in 
consequence of the sparseness of settlement, and ap- 
peals continued ^^ossible to the supreme court at De- 
troit. Law and legislation for the territory of Michi- 
gan had been dependent upon the governor and the 
judges, three in number, appointed during good be- 
havior, who formed the legislative council, as well as 
the executive power, subject only in a remote and in- 
operative way, to congress, under the organic act. Af- 
ter 1819, a delegate was elected to congress for the 
whole of the territory of Michigan, which included 
our own and much more. Four years later an elec- 
tive legislature was permitted, subject to an appoint- 
ing power on the part of the president, which al- 
lowed him to choose nine to form a council out of the 
eighteen nominated by the electors. 

Imprisonment for debt or for damages was permit- 
ted by law in any case wdiere the amount exceeded 
$5.00. Persons convicted of leading immoral lives 
were liable to be whij^ped, or might be sentenced to 
hard labor for three months, in which case the con- 
stable became master of the situation, as he could 
hire out the prisoner to work for whom he pleased, 
the wages procured being applied to the benefit of the 
poor. He was in his own esteem often one of the 



104: HISTOKY OF MADISON. 

poorest. The territory was so impoverished that there 
were not funds sufficient to print the laws, and in con- 
sequence, only titles and digests could be prepared for 
the use of the courts. This was the condition of af- 
fairs when congress made provision for an additional 
judge for the counties of Brown and Crawford, 
now Wisconsin, and the county of Michilimackinac. 
Judge Doty held office for two terms from 1823 to 
1832, when Judge Irvin was appointed, and four 
years later the court was abrogated by the organiza- 
tion of this territory upon the admission of Michigan 
to the Union. Courts were held once in each year, in 
each county, from and after October, 1824, when 
Judge Doty first officiated in Green Bay to dispose of 
criminal cases. The Hon. H. S. Baird, then acting 
as attorney general at Green Bay, has since added to 
the curiosities of our Historical Society the court 
costume which was worn by the eccentric Judge 
Beaume. 

When the counties of Brown and Crawford were set 
off by Gov. Cass in 1819, blank commissions were sent, 
to be filled up, with the names of the several officers 
to be selected by the settlers; and thus it happened, 
that men were chosen as chief justices, probate 
judges and justices of the peace, who knew nothing 
of law, and were entirely ignorant as to the formali- 
ties of courts. They could obtain no books of prece • 
dents, nor any assistance to fit themselves for their 
duties. 

Many of the men tried before Judge Doty in the 



BENCH AND BAE. 105 

first term at Green Bay were j)roceeded against, 
because tliey were not legally married to tlieir lialf- 
breed or Indian wives; but most of tliem made the 
amende honorable to tlie law, by marrying in time to 
avoid the consequences of their misconduct. It is due 
to tlie majority to say, that they had complied Avith the 
customs of the country. The appointment of sheriff 
of Brown county was vacated in 1829, because a man 
named Hempstead was to be hanged for murder, and 
neither the old official, whose term had nearly expired, 
nor the new appointee, would undertake the disagree- 
able duty. Sheriff Childs was eventually appointed 
and held the office for many years, being only twice 
called upon to inflict capital punishment, from 1829 
to long after the organization of the territory. This 
says a great deal for the moral tone of the community, 
unless it indicates failures of justice. 

Justices of the peace did not frequently err on the 
side of thinking too modestly of tlieir functions and 
of themselves. Tlieir knowledge of law was pecu- 
liarly liglit, but their processes were of the heaviest. 
AYar rants for arrest were issued in proceedings to 
recover debts, as though a criminal offense had been 
charged and sworn. In a case of that kind, men- 
tioned by the Hon. H. S. Baird, a debtor having been 
arrested preparatory to trying a cause, the justice 
issued a second warrant to arrest the plaintiff, and 
upon the constable, who had the defendant in cus- 
tody, objecting to carry one prisoner along in pur- 
suit of the other, the justice obviated the difficulty 



106 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

bj commanding a traveler to remain and act as cus- 
todian of the oiFender, for whom there was no lockup. 
Plaintiff and defendant being both under arrest, the 
suit proceeded in due course, but the most interesting 
part of the whole business arose when the traveler 
from Illinois, who had been detained as custodian, 
would have proceeded on his waj, as thereupon the 
justice, who was also keeper of the hotel, compelled 
him to pay the expenses of his detention. Shaks- 
pere's portraiture of Dogberry might find many ex- 
emplars in sparsely settled countries, but no man 
within his jurisdiction would have dared to write 
that justice down an ass. 

Another instance of justice's justice occurred un- 
der the observation of Mr. Baird in a log school 
house in Iowa county. The action was to recover 
payment on a note of hand, and evidence entirely 
irrelevant had been repeatedly objected to by counsel, 
being just as frequently sustained by the court, when 
the foreman of the jury, taking offense at the action 
of the lawyer, in renewing his objections, left the 
jury seat, swearing that he would " remain no longer, 
to hear that fellow," the counsel for the other side. 
The justice followed the foreman to the door, and 
wdth much entreaty brought him back, promising that 
the attorney for the other side " should not interfere 
any more." On that condition the foreman of the 
.jury resumed his seat, but he subscribed a super- 
fluous oath at the same time, that he would not 
" stand any more of that fellow's nonsense." It 



BENCH AND BAE. 107 

is needless to say, that the hxwjer was effectually 
silenced, and that the case of his client Avas, in con- 
sequence, hopelessly wrecked. Sometimes, beyond 
question, there are cases when the persistency of a 
lawyer occupies the time of the court only to prove 
the weakness of his client's case; but there does not 
appear to have been any such feature in the pro- 
ceedings of the advocate before the tyrannical fore- 
man and his obsequious friend, the justice. The name 
of justice was for once a misnomer. 

Court affairs proceeded with regularity. Wiscon- 
sin was duly organized as a territory in 1836, the 
laws being subject to the veto of congress. The 
courts increased in importance, three judges of the 
supreme court were appointed, the chief justice and 
two associates, two to form a quorum ; and the ma- 
chinery of district courts, courts of probate, and jus- 
tices of the peace, gave completeness to the organ- 
ization. The census in 1838 showed a population in 
the territory — the extent of which is elsewhere given — 
of 18,119 souls. The first annual term appointed for 
July 1837, in this city, was not held, as there was no 
business matured, but in the following July, 1838, C. 
J. Dunn and associate justice Frazer, constituted the 
court. Since that time all the terms have been held 
in Madison. It is claimed that sometimes when on cir- 
cuit in Milwaukee and elsewhere remote from the cap- 
ital. Judge Frazer indulged freely in whisky and poker, 
being probably of opinion that when in Rome, he must 
do as the Eomans did; but certain it is that no judge 



108 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

on the bench ever condemned gambling more emphat- 
ically than he. At one term of his court in Milwau- 
kee, when a defendant sued for a debt, pleaded present 
inability to pay, he adjudged him to liquidate the 
amount in iisli within twelve months. The defendant 
being a fisherman, expressed his willingness to carry 
out that arrangement. Other items of business were 
handled in a manner just as informal. Two Indians 
tried for murder were condemned to death, and on 
the following day the same men w^ere further prose- 
cuted for an assault, on which charge, being convicted, 
they were cumulatively sentenced to five years' impris- 
onment and a heavy fine. The governor commuted 
the double sentences to imprisonment for life, and 
the Indians were pardoned after two years servitude. 
Judge Frazer did not live long after assuming his du- 
ties in Wisconsin, and it is supposed that free living ac- 
celerated his death ; but he was sixty-two years old when 
he died in Milwaukee, in October, 1838. 

The Chief Justice, Hon. Charles Dunn, was an able 
and worthy man, thirty-seven years of age when the 
organic act passed for Wisconsin. President Jackson 
appointed him chief justice. That position he contin- 
ued to occupy until the state organized its judiciary, 
when he resumed the practice of his profession, in 
La Fayette. His prolonged residence in this territory 
and state, won for him the respect of all classes, and 
the admiration of those who were most conversant 
with his many excellent qualities. After his resump- 
tion of professional labors in La Fayette, the ex-chief 



BENCH AND BAR. 109 

justice filled many important offices, having been 
elected state senator for tliat county, and having 
served as chairman of the judiciary committee of the 
senate. He was a member of the convention that 
framed the state constitution, and during the whole 
of his career deserved and enjoyed the confidence and 
esteem of his cotemporaries. John II. Fonda has 
left a somewhat detailed report of the trial of an In- 
dian for the murder of a Avhite man named Akins, 
for inducing his squaw to leave him and to live with 
Akins. The proceedings of the court were not so 
regular and orderly as could be desired, seeing that 
the retiring room for the jury was a grocery, in which 
every man could take his fill of liquor for seventy-five 
cents, and it was asserted that every man in the court 
was drunk; but in the end the prisoner was acquitted, 
as the evidence demanded he should be, so that the 
jury must have been properly directed. This was the 
first prosecution under the territorial organization at 
Prairie du Chien. Judge Dunn was called to his ac- 
count some few years since. 

Judge David Irvin was the successor to Judge Doty 
at Green Bay, and in the counties presided over by 
him, until 1832. When the territory was organized 
the Judge became one of the associate judges. He 
was singularly neat and ultra economical, but gen- 
erally reputed an honest and worthy man. Kumor 
says that he lost a match with a rich lady in St. Louis, 
because he would persist in mending his own stock- 
ings, sewing on his buttons, and discharging many 



110 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

other of the duties that disturb the digestion of the 
average bachelor. He was fond of his horse and dog, 
believing each to be the very best of the kind that the 
world had seen. His peccadilloes caused much amuse- 
ment in the early days, among the pioneers, but there 
were none to suggest that the penurious old man 
failed to discharge his onerous duties in an honor- 
able way. Except among his own relatives, urban- 
ity never ripened into acts of kindness, nor did he 
seem capable of great attachments — save for the horse 
and dog aforesaid — consequently there were few to 
mourn over his departure for Texas, when upon the 
organization of the state, other judges were appointed. 
Judge Irvin died in Texas in June, 1872, shortly after 
the decease of Judge Dunn, having attained the ripe 
maturity of seventy- three years. During the war he 
was favorable to the falling cause, and at one time 
came near being captured by Gov. C. C. Washburn's 
force. He was not profound as a lawyer, but he was 
naturally just and shrewd, possessing a good memory, 
and he accumulated knowledge just as he stored the 
other valuables, for which he had more affection. 

The successor to Judge Frazer was the Hon. 
Andrew Galbraith Miller, from Pennsylvania, ap- 
pointed by President Yan Buren. "When Wisconsin 
was admitted as a state, Judge Miller was transferred 
to the position of United States district judge, re- 
maining in that office with changes of location until 
his death. Judge Miller never failed to discharge the 
high functions devolving iipon him, in a manner that 



BENCH AND BAK. Ill 

demonstrated the possession of fair attainments and 
a capacity equal to the demands of the most exacting 
of all the liberal professions. Years hence, his worth 
will be better understood than even now. lie was 
gathered into the silent city several years since, and 
many, who during his lifetime condemned the acerbi- 
ty which often marked his manner in office, are now 
among his eulogists. It is something to have carried 
through life, the reputation of an honest man, and 
failings of temper do not largely detract from the 
final estimate of genuine worth. His abilities were 
good and his attainments sufficient to render him a 
very useful and valuable public officer. 

Chief Justice Whiton, who was a temperance man 
in the later years of his career in a generation of hard 
drinkers, is very honorably associated with the estab- 
lishment of our courts and statutes. He was not the 
first chief justice elected upon the organization of the 
'state, but his merits were so early recognized b}^ the 
people when a separate supreme court was chosen 
that a brief sketch of his career will give the best in- 
sight to the manner in which judicial and other mat- 
ters were transacted in the early days. About the 
time when the first settlers were coming into our 
village, in 1837, Mr. Edward Y. Whiton erected a 
log cabin in Janesville, having migrated west, from 
his native town of Lee, in Berkshire county, Massa- 
chusetts. He was than thirty-two years of age, but 
unmarried. He entered upon the practice of his pro- 
fession, but briefs that winter were not as plentiful as 



112 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

sno^vilakes. He was elected to the legislature and sat 
in tlie first session held in this city in 1838. The fol- 
lowing year saw him reelected, and during the second 
session of that year he became speaker of the house. 
The territorial statutes having been revised, he was 
entrusted with the highly important task of superin- 
tending their publication, making marginal notes and 
an index, which duties were discharged so ably that 
for many years the volumes referred to were the 
standard and reference books of the profession in 
Wisconsin. He continued in the assembly until 1842, 
when his services were transferred to the council, of 
which body he was a member until 1846. He was a 
member of the second constitutional convention, oc- 
cupying an important place in most of its delibera- 
tions. When the constitution was adopted, he was 
chosen judge of the first circuit, defeating the nom- 
inee of the democratic convention, then very influen- 
tial. The supreme court was composed of the circuit 
judges, and for some time Judge Whiton was chief 
justice by the vote of his fellow jurists. Before this 
time, his action in the legislature had won a very high 
place in popular esteem, which could not fail, when- 
ever the people should become masters of the 
situation, to procure generous recognition. There 
is no mistake greater than the assumption that re- 
publics are ungrateful. Tlie men who make that as- 
sertion have customarily set too high an estimate up- 
on their services. Mr. Whiton had never erred in 
that way. Having served as speaker of the assembly, 



BENCH AND BAR. 113 

he possessed a just esteem for tlie dignity of represen- 
tative government, and when Governor Doty collided 
with the legislature, by his gratuitous conclusion that 
all laws passed in the territory were null and void, 
unless they had been expressly sanctioned by con- 
gress, the lawyer and the patriot were alike called to 
do battle for the right. Judge Doty had won a good 
name in the earlier days, but a comparatively unques- 
tioned career had made him dictatorial. He was per- 
emptory and wrongheaded during the major part of 
the conflict with the two houses. Unfortunately the 
whole of his gubernatorial career was a conflict to the 
very day of his removal. Mr. Whiton was one of the 
first to take up the gage of battle on behalf of the legis- 
lature, and he did so by moving that the representa- 
tives of the people should proceed with their duties, 
irrespective of the governor. Another act of his will 
serve to show that he was in the front ranks of the 
whig party. Having become a member of the coun- 
cil, he proposed in that body in 1816 that colored ^Der- 
sons should be allowed to vote. The pi-oposition was 
laid on the table by a majority of one vote only, the 
members being seven against and six for the extension 
of the franchise to negroes. Six years later the oppor- 
tunity occurred for the people to elect their chief jus- 
tice, the democratic party had almost complete control 
of the state, but Judge Whiton was chosen by a large 
majority against the nominee of the ruling organization 
in the fall elections of 1852, when Samuel Crawford 
and A. D. Smith were elected associates. 
8 



114 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

Prior to that time, Judge Jackson having declined 
to serve as cliief in tlie supreme court, consisting of 
the circuit judges, the honor had been conferred upon 
Judge Whiton. The action of the chief justice in 
the case of Glover, a man of color, arrested at Eacine, 
according to the provisions of the Fugitive Slave Law, 
steered the middle course between partizan zeal on the 
one hand, and that dictated by holders of property in 
human flesh, on the other, recognizing the law as un- 
doubtedly constitutional, but finding an avenue of 
escape for Sherman M. Booth, the chief rescuer of 
Glover, in a convenient irregularity in the warrant. 
The court unanimously concurred on that point. The 
people had long before solved the question, so far as 
Glover was concerned. The jail in Milwaukee had 
been surrounded by impatient thousands, all day, 
from the moment that it became known that the ar- 
rested fugitive was there incarcerated. There was a 
belief that Glover could be liberated under a writ of 
habeas^ and' the process of trial by jury ; but the crowd 
nominated a vigilance committee to watch proceed- 
ings, and toward evening when the steamer came in 
from Hacine, there arrived a body of nearly one hun- 
dred men, who administered a summary ]3roces8 by 
breaking into the jail and freeing the captive. The 
militia called out to suppress the tumult, refused the 
duty. The slave owner. Garland, who had arrested 
Glover, was himself taken for assault and battery, com- 
mitted in the capture. 

Editor Booth and John Eyecraft Avere found guilty 



BENCH AXD BAR. 115 

by the United States district court in January, 1855, 
and sentenced to fine and imprisonment, with costs, in 
the case of Booth ; but on the 26tli of that month, a 
writ of habeas was apj^lied for in the supreme court, 
and on the 4th of the following month the prisoners 
were liberated, by the decisions of Chief Justice Whit- 
on and Associate Justice A. D. Smith. There re- 
mained but one process where the courts were so com- 
pletely in conflict. Garland sued Booth in the United 
States district court for the value of the escaped chat- 
tel, and the jury, under direction from the judge, gave 
him a verdict for §1,000, the worth of a man, accord- 
ing to the congressional declaration of 1850. Eight 
centuries had ameliorated the conditions of enforced 
servitude among Anglo-Saxons, in some degree. In 
the eleventh century in England, the Parliament de- 
clared that the value of an adult white serf of either 
sex was just $5.00, and in the middle of the nineteenth 
century, America had similarly pronounced uj)on the 
black, making the standard $1,000. 

Another case just as exciting, but of another com- 
plexion, arose in 1856, when the quo icarranto ap- 
plication, Bashford against Barstow, called upon the 
supreme court to determine who was the governor of 
the state. The friends and supporters of Bashford 
claimed that all the powers of the state government 
had been exerted to procure a falsification of the ballot 
and a fraudulent return from the state canvassers, in 
favor of Governor Barstow, while, in reality. Coles 
Bashford had been elected by the popular vote. Both 



ll(j HISTORY OF MADISON. 

claimants were sworn in as governor, bnt Barstow was 
in possession. To liim Jndge Collins administered the 
oath of office, snrroiinded by all the trappings of state. 
Cliief Justice Whiton, in his office at the supreme 
court, performed the like function for Governor Bash- 
ford. The governor in possession asserted that there 
was no power that could properly question the certifi- 
cate of the state canvassers, consequently he refused to 
yield to the importunities of his successor. The 
claimant was fortunate in securino: the services of E. 
Gr. Byan, our admirable Chief Justice, and Hon. Tim. 
O. Howe, one of our IJ. S. senators, as his leading 
counsel, and after some delay, in spite of the protest's 
of Governor Barstow against the exercise of authority 
and jurisdiction, which it was asserted did not belong 
to the court, it became evident that there would be a 
judgment of ouster. 

Gov. Barstow precipitately resigned, declining to 
contest the issue before the judges, for reasons as- 
signed to the legislature; but before that step was 
taken, there had been a decision, giving judgment for 
Bashford upon an ex parte statement, in default of 
a sufficient defense on the part of Barstow. There 
had been much manipulation to prevent that conclu- 
sion. The state attorney general, who appeared at 
first on behalf of the relator, dismissed his own in- 
formation and protested against the action of the 
court; but the judges concurred in sustaining the 
claim of Gov. Bashford, calling upon him, as a pru- 
dential measure, to establish his right by evidence. 



BENCH AND BAE. llT 

Party feeling was strong, but wlien lawyers so emi- 
nent and fearless as the present chief justice and his 
associate counsel championed the cause of the claim- 
ant, and still more, when counsel so astute as Matt. H. 
Carpenter, could see no defense, there must have been 
something beyond partisan virulence in the assault. 
The tyranny of the courts and judges was never so 
great a danger; nor could the tribunals become so 
perilous to the state, in every relation, under any cir- 
cumstances, as the arbitrary power which might be 
exercised by corrupt boards of canvassers and irresj)on- 
sible governors, should the conclusion be arrived at that 
their action was beyond legal challenge and incapable 
of rectification. The people generally evinced their 
satisfaction with Chief Justice Whiton's conduct in 
office by -reelecting him in the spring of 1857, his ma^ 
jority ranging near twelve thousand. Two years later 
the chief justice died in harness, a com23aratively 
young man, being only in his fifty-fifth year at the 
time of his decease. He had been for twenty- two 
years a public servant in the territory and state, and 
no slur has been cast upon his name, even by his most 
virulent political opponents. 

Chief Justice L. S. Dixon, who for many years 
filled the office with marked ability, was appointed 
lyro tem.^ after the death of Chief Justice E. Y. 
Whiton, and was subsequently elected, defeating the 
popular republican nominee, A. Scott Sloan. Judge 
Orsamus Cole was reelected in 1861, and the like 
honor conferred upon the chief justice in 1863, who 



118 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

retained the office until June 15, 187-1. "When Judge 
Dixon determined to resign liis position, the office 
was conferred by appointment on the present occu- 
pant, the Hon. E. G. Ryan, whose services have com- 
manded the approval of all classes, and been indorsed 
by popular election. There is good reason for assum- 
ing that there will be no change in the occupancy of 
the office as long as the present chief justice cares to 
discharge the onerous duty for which he is so well 
qualified. The associate justices, Messrs. Lyon and 
Cole, are so well known that it is only necessary to 
say they are worthy and popular men. The courts 
reflect honor upon the community, and render life 
and property alike safe against aggression. The 
United States and other courts located in Madison 
are well administered by their respective judges and 
officers, and it is long since any question has arisen 
in which the people have conflicted with the tribunals. 
" Haj^py is the people that has no history," and that 
is especially the case wdiere judges and courts are 
concerned. It would be invidious as w^ell as pre- 
sumptuous to speak of individual merits in a work 
that is only intended for popular reading; suffice it 
to say that the professional men practicing in this 
city compare favorably with the like class in other 
cities in the union, and indeed there are few capital 
cities in whicli the abilities and talents displayed by 
S. U. Finney, Wm. F. Yilas, Geo. B. Smith, and H. 
S. Orton can be surpassed. They stand as represents 
ative men in a learned and honorable body, and 
Madison respects their varied powers. 



CHURCHES AND PASTORS. 119 



CHAPTER YII. 

CHURCHES AND PASTORS. 

The supposed first attempt at cimrcli organization 
was named in our pioneer sketches. Many similar 
works followed. Any preacher was welcomed in Mr. 
Eeam's, Madison House. Bishop Kemper was a 
visitor there, and Father Quaw, from Canada. Col. 
Slaughter and Mr. Eeam were vestrymen. The last 
named gentleman was in request as a singer, when 
services were held by any denomination. Kev. W. 
Philo was the minister of the " Apostolic Church " 
for twelve months. " Dominie Pliilo " was senti- 
mental in his references to the other sex, and that fact 
provoked laughter, hut, on the whole, he was much 
respected. When Mr. Toots in " Dombey and Son," 
was crossed in love, he told Miss Dombey, " It's not of 
the slightest consequence." It was otherwise with 
Mr. Philo. There was no Susan Nipper to give him 
consolation. He took to it kindly, and became senti- 
mental. Probably some eastern belle had declined to 
share his missionary privations, and he knew that 
" the course of true love never did run smooth," 
There was a donation party for the good man on 
Christmas Eve, 1840, and he was made rich in crea- 
ture comforts; but he was suspected of shedding 



120 HISTOEY OF MADISOI}-. 

tears, as he reflected on the happiness that Diilcinea 
had lost. Ready to take part in any ameliorating 
effort, we find him conducting the religious exercises 
of the celebration, July tttli, 1841, when Mr. Slinger- 
land of the Dutch Reformed Church was the orator. 
An oyster, crossed in love, would become more mis- 
anthropical than the Rev. Washington Philo. 

Rev. Richard F. Cadle, his successor, had lived 
fourteen years in the territory. He came to Green 
Bay as a missionary to the Indians. One hundred 
and twenty-nine children, Indian and mixed, at one 
time w^ere taught by him and his assistants, industri- 
al habits and the elements of a good English Chris- 
tian training; but the efibrt died out after sixteen 
years. Mr. Cadle was chaplain of the fort at Green 
Bay and taught school. Many of the early teachei*s 
were men and women of good standing. He removed 
to Fort Crawford, Prairie du Chien, in 18(^6, being 
chaplain and teacher there for five years, iintil he 
came as pastor of the Apostolic Church, to this vil- 
lage. 

Rev. Albert Slingerland's Dutch Reformed Church 
was a heterooceneous combination. There was an un- 
derstanding among the nine members, that name and 
creed should remain subject to the will of the major- 
ity. The congregation was organized in 1810. The 
preacher officiated twelve months from the preceding 
June. He was indefatigable, lecturing on temperance 
as well as preaching, from Sun Prairie to Prairie du 
Sac. Col. Brigham was the ruling elder. Eventu- 



CHUliCHES AND PASTOES. 121 

ally his followers came under the pastorate of Rev. J. 
M. Clarke, having joined the Presbyterian and Congre- 
gational convention. Rev. S. E. Miner, now a prosper 
ous business man in Kansas, next preached under the 
auspices of the Home Missionary Society. Eben Peck's 
log house w^as their temporary church until a commodi- 
ous barn had been erected. A better edifice was raised 
in 181:6 on Webster street, block 108, lot 10, that seated 
250. Rev. Chas. Lord came in 1846, and continued 
until 1854, when, his eyesight failing, he resigned. 
Rev. H. N. Eggleston, his successor, was very popular. 
When he left, there came near being a permanent 
split in the congregation. 

There is a general impression that whisky drinking 
was very common among the pioneers. Mr. Slinger- 
land, in 1840, said that intemperance was not so pre- 
valent as in ISTew York, but Sabbath breaking and pro- 
fanity impressed him strongly. Some preachers have 
preserved the best chronicles of the time. Rev. Dr. 
Brunson gives a lively picture of the various uses of 
the capitol for •■' courts, plays, shows, and worship," as 
well as legislation. Faro banks and the "Tiger" 
were excluded, but there were signs of the credit mo- 
bilier. The murder of C. C. P. Arndt on the eleventh 
of February, 1842, gave a terrible completeness to the 
catalogue of deeds possible in the capitol. J. R. 
Vineyard, from Grant county, terminated a dispute 
of his own beginning by shooting his fellow member 
through the heart, in the council chamber. The 
council refused Vineyard's resignation and expelled 



122 HISTORY OF MADISOI^'. 

him from the legislature, but the courts acquitted 
him of manslauo^hter. The funeral services in the 
chamber were very impressive, and Arndt was in- 
terred at Green Bay. Yineyard went to California. 
Considering the excitment, it is a wonder that he was 
not lynched. C. C. P. Arndt' s father was in the as- 
sembly when his son was shot, having been invited 
from Green Bay to a social gathering which had been 
enjoyed the night before. The Arndts, father and 
son, were beloved, and the murder was unprovoked. 

The erection of a Catholic church was resolved on 
in 1845, and commenced in the following spring. 
The church on Morris street wns built in 1850, and 
three years later the foundation stone of the Catholic 
cathedral on Main street was laid by Bishop Henni. 
The consecration of St. Baphaels, in 1866, was a grand 
ceremonial, as was also the dedication of " The Church 
of the Holy Eedeemer " in 1869. The storm of 1874 
injured the steeple of the cathedral, so that it was 
taken down, but the structure will be improved greatly 
in consequence. 

The first sermon was preached in Madison by the 
Rev. Salmon Stebbins, M. E., as presiding elder of 
the Milwaukee district, in the Illinois conference. 
He came on the 28th of l^ovember, 1837, and upon 
the invitaton of Col. Bird, converted the bar room of 
his brother's house into a tabernacle. The elder, a 
vigorous preacher at Kenosha, says: "I preached to 
an interested and interesting congregation." There 
was no collection, but the men made up a purse of 



CHURCHES AND TASTOES. 123 

$11. There were few inliabitants between Madison 
and JeiFerson. He came tlirongli Kenosha — then 
Southport — and by way of Milwankee, throngh the 
connties of Washington, Manitowoc and Sheboygan, 
to Green Bay and Fond dn Lac — a formidable 
jonrney over snch roads. Milwankee was the first 
location made in this territory. Solomon Jnneau 
was in his prime, a prosperous Indian trader, fomid- 
ing a city. Root River Mission was formed with 
Rev. Samuel Pillsbury in charge. He was onr second 
preacher, and is now editing a paper. Col. Bird 
thought that Elder Stebbins' sermon was preached in 
September, but the money entry in the diary of the 
Elder fixes the date of the service. The foundation 
of the capitol was completed in November, and the 
men waited for Eben Peck to return from Green 
Bay. Mr. Woolcock of Jefferson says : " Peck had to 
swim the rivers and tlie money was wet, so we waited 
until it was dry to get our pay. About the end of 
]N"ovember we started." Mrs. Marion Starkweather, 
Col. Bird's daughter, says that Mr. Pillsbury came in 
March, 1838, and held services afterwards once every 
month. Col. Bird provided a barn for him, where 
Kentzler's stables are now standing. There were few 
white settlers; Col. Bird, with four children, Chas. 
and "Wm. Bird, and Dr. Almon Lull were present 
when he first preached, but the outside attendance 
was large. About four hundred Indians surrounded 
the buikling, but would not enter. Mr. Pillsbury 
was a frequent visitor. He assisted in opening the 



124 HISTOKY OF MADISON. 

capitol when the first session was held in the un- 
finished building. Mr. Hyer mentions the habits of 
the Indians in his notice of " Covalle the trapj^er.'' 
His Indian wife and her children Would gather to 
observe the Sunday meetings, and the proceedings of 
settlers in their homes, but would rarely enter. Dr. 
Joseph Hobbins says, that an Indian and his squaw 
dined with him and his family, behaving with ex- 
emplary decorum during the repast ; but after leaving 
the table they asked for every article that caught 
their fancy; considering that fact, their backwardness 
was a blessing. 

The Methodists did not recruit rapidly. In Sej)- 
tember, 1838, Rev. John Hodges was appointed here 
and to Fort Winnebago, now Portage. The first three 
members in Madison were Ruth Starks, Benjamin 
Holt and his wife. Dr. Brunson was a member of the 
legislature in 184:0, and he rallied the Methodists, 
assisting the chaplain, Jas. Mitchell, in occasional 
services. He thinks that Mr. Fullerton was here in 
1841. S. P. Keyes was here next year; then Jesse L. 
Bennet in 1843^ and Mr. Stebbins afterwards. The 
several preachers cannot be mentioned, but Jonathan 
Snow is a piece of our history. He became eccentric 
and nearly killed the church by harsh discipline in 
1851. He was summarily removed and is remem- 
bered as " The Snow Storm.'' Glen. Samnel Fallows 
was the junior preacher in 1858-9, and in 1864 the 
chaplain of the 3d Wisconsin supplied the pulpit. 
Rev. E. D. Huntly is now the pastor and is working 



CHrRCIIES AND PASTOES. 125 

strenoiisly to complete the edifice almost ready 
for dedication. The little church was once a great 
imj^rovement on former experiences, bnt the new 
bnilding will be an ornament to the city. "When the 
" Little Brick" school house, on Washington avenue, 
became too small, Damon Y. Kilgore removed his 
pupils to the basement of the Methodist church. 
Even there 250 pupils in one room must have re- 
quired good stowage and little fuel in winter. 

" Chief Justice " Seymour was reflected upon in a 
public meeting during the pastorate of Mr. Philo, 
because, he being a justice of the peace, did not " kill 
the tiger" that was being "fought" by many citi- 
zens. The respected '' dominie," never susj^ecting a 
joke, drew up a resolution exculpating the squire as a 
"good and suflicient justice," and the audience, which 
had assembled in indignation, broke up in laughter. 
There were hard cases in the settlement, compared 
with whom Covalle was a marvel of civilization. 
Pinneo, a " shingle weaver," attended church one day 
when Mr. Philo was preaching, and he astounded the 
congregation by saying very seriously, " That's so, Mr. 
Philo, that's so, Butterfield's got to be saved; just 
hold on 'till I bring him in." Pinneo did not return. 
His absence was, in an olfactory sense, a pleasure. 
He claimed to be a down east Yankee, but that was 
the only sign of good lineage. He was indispensable 
as a maker of shingles, and when sober, had a laugh 
and a joke for everybody, but people kept to wind- 
ward of the unwashed man. He was summoned to 



126 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

serve on a jury in Judge Irvin's court, and tlie judge 
was scrupulously clean, while Piiineo was dirty as was 
possible to a life divorced from soap and water. The 
court was adjourned to enable Pinneo to wash and 
procure clean clothes, after listening to a diatribe 
against filth ; but he survived the affliction, and was 
burned to death at last in a drunken orgie. 

Covalle conformed to the usages of civilization, 
attended church, was orderly, took physic with praise- 
worthy resolution, gave it to his half-breed children, 
made them wear the garments of white folks, and 
attend the ceremony of his marriage to their mother, 
before a justice. He had been married according to 
the usages of the country. He traced his line to the 
trappers on Hudson's Bay, and when Col. Bird came 
here, Covalle was the only white man on the site. He 
led a blameless life, being cleanly, sober and obliging. 
Better conditions supervened. Kev. Stephen McHugh 
was called by the Episcopal church in 1845, having 
become known during attendance to deliver a Masonic 
oration on the anniversary of St. John. He organ- 
ized Grrace Church parish, and the ladies raised funds 
to purchase the land occupied by the church. A 
brick parsonage, commenced in 1850, was occupied on 
Christmas day when the Rev. W. H. Woodward was 
pastor. The next rector was the Rev. Hugh M. Thomp- 
son, followed by Mr. Powers. The sound of the 
church-going bell in the village was due to Squire 
Seymour. Meetings, social, political and religious, 
were repeatedly delayed because no two clocks or 



CIIUKCIIES AND PASTOES. 127 

watclies agreed, and tlie variations extended over two 
hours. Somebody suggested a bell; Seymour drew 
up a subscription paper, ordered the instrument, and 
on its arrival procured the first peal from its clapper, 
utilizing the astonishment of the audience by carrying 
round the hat. The bell w^as the common property 
of all the churches and every organization. 

Eev. J. B. Brittan came in 1855, and funds were 
raised to build a church, wdnch was not finished when 
Mr. Brittan became chaplain of a regiment. There 
had been an outlay of $22,000, but the tower was in- 
complete and the basement was not ready for occu- 
pancy. Rev. Jas. L. Maxwell came next, remaining 
until 1867. Before he resigned, a very handsome 
organ had been built at a cost of $2,500. Under the 
rectorship of the Rev. II. W. Spaulding, the building 
was completed in 1872. When the Rev. Dr. Spauld- 
ing removed to Pittsburg, the Rev. John Wilkinson, 
of Chicago, the present incumbent, succeeded him, 
winning the good opinion of all classes. A chime of 
nine bells was placed in the tower in April, 1874. 
The bishop's bell, in memory of Bishops Kemper and 
Armitage, the largest in the chime, was purchased by 
general contributions, as also was the seventh, the 
rest being donated iri memoriam of the departed, 
whose names they bear. 

The Cono-reo^ational Church eventuated from Mr. 
Slingerland's labors, and we have followed the organ- 
ization to Mr. Eggleston's ministry. The people were 
attracted by Mr. Eggleston, and Bacon's Commercial 



128 



HISTOEY OF MADISON. 



College was nsecl wliile a. brick chapel was building 
on Washington avenne. Mr. Eggleston was succeeded 
by Rev. James Caldwell in 1858, and in the following 
January a church was specially organized to receive 
Mr. Eggleston as pastor, to be known as " The Union 
Congregational Church and Society of Madison." 
Eventually all reunited. Revs. L. Taylor and Lewis 
E. Matson bring us to the present incumbent, Rev. 




Chas. H. Richards, whose talents and good 'qualities 
have made him a gain to the community. Arriving 
in March, 1867, he has assisted in the later develop-' 
ments of the church, among which must be noted the 
elegant edifice, capable of seating one thousand per- 
sons. The bell in the tower was given by Mrs. L. A. 
Richards, and was at that time the heaviest in the 
city; but the " Bishops' Bell," in Grace Church chime 
is five hundred pounds heavier. 



CHURCHES AND PASTOES. 129 

The Presbyterian Cliurcli was at first identified with, 
other organizations. Hev. H. B. Gardiner was re- 
tained by the congregation in 1851 at Lewis Hall, 
The bnilding since nsed as a bakery by Mr. Miner, at 
the corner of Mifliin and Carroll streets, was next 
occupied, and in 1853, the church moved into the 
frame building, corner of Wisconsin avenue and 
Johnson street. The several pastors have been the 
Revs. Wm. L. Green, Edward G, Read and Richard 
Y. Dodge, until we reach the pastorate of the Rev. 
L. Y. Hays, who has served since 1873, maintaining 
unabated popularity and usefulness, and taking a 
praiseworthy part in many movements outside the 
church. 

The First Baptist Church was organized in Decem- 
ber, 1817, by the Rev. II. W. Read, his successors be- 
ing the Revs. John "Williams, S. S. Whitman, M. D. 
Miller, James Cooper and Wm. R. Brooks, whose 
pastorate ended in 1858. There were many preachers 
for brief terms. In the summer of 1860, Rev. W. H. 
Brisbane became pastor, but resigned to become chap- 
lain of the first Wisconsin cavalry regiment. Rev. 
J. E. Johnson assumed pastoral charge in 1863, and 
he was followed in succession by Revs. J. C. C. Clarke, 
Mr. Paige and Thomas Bright, who came to the city 
in 1873, and rendered acceptable service until his 
lamentable sudden death in the pulpit, in September, 
1876. 

The German Evangelical Association commenced 
operations in 1811, when the missionary, Rev. J. G. 



130 HISTORY OF 3IADIS0N. 

Miller, having found German families in Madison, 
held service in their houses. The whole of Wiscon- 
sin was his parish, and his salary was $41 in 1815, 
increasing to $17 the second year. His successors 
were the Revs. J. Ej^ly and M. Howard, but Mr. 
Miller was still a frequent visitor. Revs. C. Sclmake 
and W. Strasberger commenced a church building 
between Broome and Bassett streets, which was fin- 
ished by Mr. Miller in 1856. The church on Pinck- 
ney street, corner of Mifflin, was built in 1865, under 
the pastoral charge of the Rev. W. F. Schneider, suc- 
ceeded by the Revs. C. F. Finger and Chas. Schneider, 

The German Lutheran Church has erected two 
buildings, the first on Main street, in 1858, near^the 
railroad depot, on block forty-four; the second, ten 
years later, on Washington avenue and West Canal 
street. The organization dates from 1856. Rev. H. 
Yogel, was pastor until 1872, when he was succeeded 
by Rev. Christian Wilke. 

The German Methodist Church, Rev. Mr. AYalker, 
pastor, was built in 1864, on the corner of Mifilin and 
Webster streets. 

The Norwegian Lutheran Church, on the corner of 
Hamilton and Butler streets, was erected in 1862. 
Rev. H. A. Preuss is pastor. 

The Hebrew Congregation Schaare Schoymayn, of 
which the Rev. J M. Thuringer is Rabbi, hold services 
every Saturday at 10 A. M., in the Synagogue on 
Washington avenue, between Henry and Fairchild 
streets. 



NEWSPAPER HISTORY. 131 



CHAPTER YIII. 

NEWSPAPER HISTORY. 

A Scotchman who liad seen tlie Stuart dynasty 
sung from a throne, said: "Let me make a nation's 
ballads, and who will, may make its laws." Newspa- 
pers have superseded ballads. Journalism, the popu- 
lar voice in type, is the foe of usurpation. The 
growth of our press has been wonderful. While 
Captain Carver diplomatized among the Indians here, 
the newspaper advanced from an advertising sheet to 
a political power. Before King George rewarded 
Carver with a grant, the press had defeated the mon- 
arch. The stamp act might have been fought in 
vain, but for our journals. Henry would have roused 
a small circle, but there would have been no national 
soul. Journalism was the bond of union that saved 
the colonies. Charles Carroll, in the Maryland Ga- 
zette^ indorsed Patrick Henry, and every liberal sheet 
responded. The Gazette^ in Pennsylvania; the New- 
jport Mercury^ P. I., answered the call, and the 2fer- 
cury was suppressed in vain. Charleston papers took 
up the strain; l^ew York sons of liberty shouted for 
freedom. The Boston Gazette echoed the words of 
Henry, backed by Adams, and a pamphlet in London 
disseminated that utterance, in spite of the British 
government. A7ithin one year the king w^as discom- 



132 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

fited, the stamp act repealed. That was the begin- 
ning, and the end was near. " I am the State," said 
Louis XIY. With greater truth the press could have 
said, " I am the Eevolution." The newspaper was 
the weapon, without which there had been no Bunker 
Hill, no world renowned Declaration. 

The Enqnwei\ published by ISToonan, was small, 
but it had power. His share in the transaction ap- 
pears elsewhere. George Hver, who set the first type, 
has been mentioned with honor. The partnerships 
of Sholes, I^oonan, Hyer and Judge Ivnapp, are sto- 
ries often told. Reed chano^ed the sheet from Demo- 
cratic to Whig, and in ISlrtt, the changeling died. 
Politics, in the early settlement, were for and against 
the commissioners. When the capitol ceased to sup- 
ply pabulum, a Democratic pioneer says, " we went 
where we belonged." 

Party lines were observed when the Wisconsin 
Express appeared, in 1839. Wyman sold the paper 
to D. Atwood and Poyal Buck, who afterwards con- 
solidated with the Statesman. Its politics were 
Whig. Wyman was a hard hitter. When Peam and 
Clark were candidates for the ofiice of register, the 
former winning by two votes, Wyman made affidavit 
and published, that the canvassers had suppressed 
returns. Peam confirms that statement, saying: "I 
found myself elected by two votes, which much sur- 
prised me .... until" .... a friend explained .... after 
exactiug secrecy .... that the extra vote was obtained 
by strategy, to make my election sure." Wyman is 



I^EWSPAPER HISTOEY. 133 

fortified, but the canvasser says: "Save me from my 
friends." 

Knapp and Delaney brought out the Wisconsin 
Democrat in 1842, which died eighteen months later, 
in the hands of J. P. Sheklon and Geo. Hyer. The 
same name was used for a paper in 1846, by Beriah 
Erown. That organ combined with the Wisconsin 
Argus. While two papers were running, both offices 
wanted the government printing. The Argus, some 
months older than the Democrat, rested on its anti- 
quity. Beriah Brown relied on shell fish, and the 
wire puller won. A caucus being called to settle the 
question, a member unseared by corruption, said: 
*' We have eat Brown's oysters and drinked his liquor. 
We can't go back on Brown." Beriah succeeded in 
taking the Argus, as well as the patronage. 

The Wisconsin Argus was published by S. Mills & 
Co., with John Y. Smith, editor. H. A. Tenney 
joined, when the firm of Tenney, Smith & Holt was 
established. Two of the firm sold to S. D. Carpen- 
ter, and Mr. Tenney remained until 1852, when the 
consolidation followed. " Old Hunkers " and " Tad- 
poles," the divisions of the Democratic party, took 
their "feast of reason" in one sheet. Mr. Carpen- 
ter retired, and Beriah " played it alone " until July, 
1851, when E. A. Calkins, since of the Milwankee 
Neics, joined the staff". Calkins & Proudfit became 
proprietors. Two years later, J. K. Proudfit sold to 
Mr. Webb. The j^aper suffered from tightness of the 
chest, and Beriah Brown was called in, but after three 



134 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

montlis yigoroiis treatment tliere were no signs of in- 
creasing vitality. Brown left Webb & Calkins, and 
the paper breathed its last. There was a resurrection, 
but Calkins & Cullaton could not make it go. Calk- 
ins sold out, other editors gave vigorous support to 
the war policy of Lincoln, but the paper would not 
live. 

Wyman brought out the Statesman in 1850. Wil- 
liam Welch was one of its editors. Wyman & Bugh 
assumed the management in 1851, and at last consol- 
idated with the Express. The Wisconsin State Pal- 
ladium resulted. Atwood, Wyman & Buck did not 
harmonize, and the paper was suspended. The State 
Journal made its appearance, with David Atwood as 
editor and proprietor, in September, 1852, the Repub- 
lican party accepting the Journal as its organ. Sev- 
eral additions and alterations have worked no change 
in the politics of the paper. Mr. Rublee, Mr. Gary, 
Mr. Reed and Mr. Culver have supported the ven- 
ture, making it one of the best journalistic proper- 
ties in the state; with one of the most complete 
printing offices west of Chicago. 

Earlier phases of newspaper activity are illustrated 
by a sketch from the Statue Journal. Mr. D. K. 
Tenney is identified with this city, and the phrases of 
Col. Bird are true to life: 

" Twenty- six years ago, Dan. K. Tenney put up at 
the '' United States Hotel," with two " bits " in his 
pocket. Col. A. A. Bird was landlord. Said Dan^ 
" Two bits sizes my pile; but I'd like to stay here 



136 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

over niglit and see what I can do to-morrow." The 
Colonel (good old soul as ever lived) looked at his 
new guest, and replied : "O God, yes; stay as long 
as you like, boy! Have some supper? O, God, yes; 
come in. Stay as long as you please." Dan had 
supper and a night's lodging, and in the morning 
struck a printing office, and secured a " sit." Getting 
a little money, Dan next turned up in the University. 
He got as much as they could spare in that institu- 
tion and returned to the printing office (the Journal, 
a wee bit of a j^aper then), working along, until toil 
and no fortune seemed foolishness. One day, all hands 
were "jeffing"on the stone to see who should get a 
pail full of whisky, when Dan. spoke up: " Who the 
d — I's got any money- in this crowd?" Xobody, of 
course; and the "devil" had to go down and "stand 
off" old "Jackknife" Robinson for a couple of 
quarts. After this amount had been disposed of, it 
struck Dan that printers were fools to be pulling 
hand press and sticking small pica, so he remarked: 
"Good bye, boys; you are all condemned fools if you 
stay here? I'm going to study law and make some- 
thing." Dan started for Portage, where he met his 
brother H. W. " I've come up to study law with 
you, by thunder." H. "W. replied sharply, " You 
have? You are a darned fool; you'd better stick to 
printing. You'll cut a hog in two studying law? 
But if you are bound to stick to law, you can see what 
you can do turning those eighty acres of' mine into 
city lots, and selling them." This was Dan's first 




D. K. TiNPCiV. is^. 



NEWSPAPER IIISTOKY. 



job. lie succeeded, stuck to the law and kept out of a 
23rinting office, except when briefs and other jobs were 
required. We don't know how 'Dan counts his 
thousands in Chicago, but next April he will begin 
the erection of a handsome block, on the spot where 
Col. Bird twenty- six years ago, took him in, with only 
two " bits," in his pocket." 

There were wild jokers in the printing offices, men 
for whom a hen-roost had no sacredness ; fellows as 
full of deviltry as Falstaff on Gad's Hill, but more 
courage. One of the Tenney's possessed a choice 
assortment of poultry. One night, when the devil 
failed to scare up copy, that power of darkness found 
occupation for idle hands, purloining capons from the 
foreman to make a feast for the father of the chapel. 
There were two Tenneys in the business, but II. A., 
to whom the poultry belonged, warmly approved the 
banquet. He said the foragers should revisit the hen 
roost, and they did so. There may be no truth, but 
there is poetical justice in the fowl invention. D. K. 
Tenney says: "Have not all my happy days for twen- 
ty-six years been spent in Madison?" Was the hap- 
piest day that night? The boys cleared his brother's 
hen-roosts like the grasshoppers scooped Kansas? 

The Wisconsin Patriot has more than one eventful 
history. Gathered to "the tomb of the Capulets," it 
is still a power. The first number appeared twenty- 
two years ago. The proprietors and editors were J. 
T. Marston and H. A. Tenney. Tenney sold to S. D. 
Carpenter, who subsequently bought out Marston. 



1^0 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

The firm of S. D. and S. H. Carpenter ran for some 
time, but after many changes, S. H. Carpenter, onr 
mnch respected "Professor of Logic and Literature," 
sold to Mr. Law, who was associated with S. D. Car- 
penter about a year. The Patriot saw many changes 
which would be tedious to narrate. The management 
at the present time is in the hands of IL A. Tenney 
and S. D. Carpenter, but their business arrangements 
are not matters of history. Two men so intimately 
identified with the press of this city, deserve a notice 
embracing more than their Madison engagements. 
Major Tenney, from whose sketches we have freely 
quoted, came in 1845, hut went to Galena, and did 
not buy into the Wisconsin Argus until 1846. He 
was government printer in 184T and the following 
year. When the constitutional convention assembled, 
he was reporter, and again in 1848. Directly and in- 
directly he was state printer until 1852, when ill 
health compelled his retirement from the Argus. 
The Major, one of the founders of the Patriot, sold 
out to his old partner. Mr. Tenney's services to the 
University are matters of history. His position as 
assistant state geologist, enabled him to aid the Uni- 
versity collections largely. In 1857, he was a mem- 
ber of the legislature, and introduced the bill for the 
new capitol. In the following year he was comptrol- 
ler of state, and one of the regents of the university. 
His services at Camp Eandall need not be enumer- 
ated, nor his appointments in the U. S. A. He was 
special agent of the P. O. department until 1864. In 



NEWSPAPER inSTOKY. 141 

1869-70, he was associate editor of the Chicago Be- 
pitblican, moving to similar duties on the Post, and 
on the St. Paul Pioneer in 1872. He became clerk 
of the railroad commission in 1874, is the oldest Mad- 
ison editor surviving in Wisconsin, and not yet tired 
of the drudgery of the press. When he began there 
were but nine exchanges, few of which have survived. 
Mr. S. D. Carpenter settled in Madison in 1850, 
and was identified in succession with the Argus, and 
the Argus and Democrat, from which having retired 
he devoted his genius for mechanics, to invention. 
The pump, to which he is indebted for a pseudonym, 
was invented in 1853, and he sold rights to the extent 
of nearly $35,000. Once more in newspaper life, Mr. 
Carpenter became editor and proprietor of the Pat- 
riot. Its politics were eventually war democratic. 
The well known claim for damages against the state, 
dates from 1864. During that year Mr. Carpenter 
devised a power press, on the model now largely used, 
feeding from paper in the roll, and he claims to have 
originated that plan. The invention of an automatic 
grain binder employed nine years, and about $40,000. 
It is claimed that -every device now operating for that 
purpose, took its rise in Mr. Carpenter's ingenuity. 
His inventions were sold to McCormick & Co., because 
a fortune was wanted to establish his rights, and fur- 
nish machines. His veneer cutting and other inven- 
tions cannot be glanced at; suffice it to say that few 
men have excelled him in variety and originality of 
design for labor-saving machinery. 



142 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

The Daily Capitol, published by "W. J. Park & 
Co., with Col. Calkilis as editor, appeared on the day 
on which President Lincoln was shot. It was a racy, 
nonpartizan daily, eventually incorporated with the 
Democrat, which was established in 1865, by Hyer 
& Fernandez, and bought by A. E. Gordon. The 
title was then changed from Wisconsin to Madison 
Democrat. Mr. Paymer is now editor and proprietor, 
having succeeded the firm of J. B. Parkinson & Co., 
which purchased from Gordon. 

The Journal of Education originated in Janesville, 
but was transferred to this city. Col. J. G. McMynn, 
afterwards state superintendent, was its editor, suc- 
ceeded by A. J. Craig, also state superintendent. 
Pev. J. B. Pradt is now one of the editors. Discon- 
tinued in 1865, in consequence of a withdrawal of 
state support, it was resumed when partial aid was 
afforded. Several substitutes started elsewhere, but 
they do not come within our limits. When Gen. 
Fallows succeeded as state superintendent, upon the 
death of Mr. Craig, he revived the Journal, and 
Superintendent Searing continues the publication. 

The ~\Visconsin Farmer, commenced under another 
name in Janesville, was removed to this city in 1855, 
the interest of one proprietor being purchased by E. 
W. Skinner and D. J. Powers. The j^aper was con- 
ducted with great energy by Dr. J. W. Hoyt, assisted 
by the skillful pen of his wife. The paper died after 
twenty years of struggle, beaten by extensive capital 
in such enterprises in eastern cities. The Norse press 



NEWSPAPER HISTOKY. 143 

has had severe vicissitudes. Many courageous efforts 
have failed; none conducted witli first class talent, 
nearly all have been respectable. The names of some 
failures are given, but some may have escaped notice: 
De NoTskes Yen, Friend of the ]S'orseman; Den 
Norske Amerikaner^ American l^orseman; the 
Nordstjernen^ ]^orthern Star ; ImmigTanten j Billed 
(or illustrated) Magaziney Imigranteiij Den Liber- 
ale Demohrat^ and ^¥i8Cons^n Banner^ have all per- 
ished. There remains only to-day the Nordvesteii^ a 
liberal democratic weekly, edited and published by L. 
J. Grinde. The Nordvesten deserves success. Ole 
Torgerson's De Norskes Yen was the first paper in a 
foreign tongue in this county. It was whig in poli- 
tics, and appeared in 1850, but a few months ended 
its career. Den Norske Amerikaner appeared in 
December 1854, and died in May, 1857. "The Scan- 
dinavian Democratic Press Association " brought out 
the Nordstjernen in 1857. Their effort was not suc- 
cessful, although changes of management were tried. 
The Emigranten was brought to this city from 
Immansville, Rock county, but after years of partial 
success, that also was gathered to its fathers. There 
have been several fugitive periodicals of a religious 
character. 

The German population supj)orts the Wisconsin 
Botschcifter, started by Porsch and Sitzman in 1869. 
There have been several German papers, but none 
have prospered. The Staats Zietung, democratic, 
edited by August Kruer, continued two years. The 



144: HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Madison Zietung, republican, liardly lived two years. 
The Madison DemoTcrat, publislied in 1858, perislied 
in 1860. Tlie German population is large enougli to 
sustain a paper, but it is divided in politics. The 
young men become absorbed in the great mass of 
Americans, notwithstanding their love and admira- 
tion for Vaterland^ and they are not disposed to 
support a sectional press which falls short of the 
American standard. The highest tyj)e of German 
intellect is ill adapted to the daily press, and cannot 
meet the sj)ecial aptitudes of this population, in 
which the paper has a position and popularity not 
approached in other parts of the world. 

Many papers deserve obituary notices in the cate- 
gory with Longfellow's hero, who, 

" By the wayside fell and perished, 
Weary with the march of life." 

The Madison Capitol was started in 1855 by J. 
N"olan. The True American^ edited by an association, 
appeared during the same year. The Western Fire- 
side^ by S. IT. Carpenter in 1857. The Higher Law, 
by Herbert Heed, in 1861; and the Soldiers Record, 
by S. W. Martin in 1864. Our educational interests 
were served by the Northwestexn Journal of Edu- 
cation, Science and Literature, in 1850, under the 
editorship of Prof. O. M. Conover, and by the Free 
School Joiirnal, edited by J. L. Enos. Of Dr. Hunt's 
ephemeral, the " Old Oaken Buc'ket,^^ a temperance 
paj)er, we can only say, Requiescat in jpace. The Stu- 



CHURCHES AND PASTORS. 145 

denfs Miscellany was commenced during tlie session 
of 1857, and its tone reflects credit on the manage- 
ment. The Home Dlai'y is a sparkling occasional paper 
edited by Y. J. Welch, which deals vigorously with 
every topic that is touched. A paragraph, denounc- 
ing the shortcomings of Park & Co., in selling a copy 
of Burns' poems without " Holy Willie's Prayer,'? is 
a favorable specimen of the style, which we subjoin: 

"Friends! be cautious in buying Burns' poems. 
We were saddled with a copy recently in which 
" Holy Willie's Prayer" was omitted. Park sold it 
to us. He is a Scotchman. He is one of the " pres- 
byt'ry of Ayr." 

*' Lord, hear my earnest cry and pray'r, 
Against the presbytVy of Ayr; 
Thy strong right hand, Lord, make it bare, 

Upo' their heads, 
Lord, weig'h it down, and dinna spare, 
For their misdeeds." 

The depth of guile implied by that accusation 
admits of no reply, except the reasonable penalty of 
supplying to every lover of the Scotish Bard a copy 
of his works, without which no library is complete. 
Park should be visited at once. 
10 




■^^VS^i^^2:^^j^«|sA£x^NL>$^ "^-CNS^V^^A"' 



KtNl@ §TRiiT, 
(Between Webster and Pinckney Streets) 

LOOKING WBST. 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 14:7 



CHAPTEE IX. 

MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 

Great cliauges have come since Madison was set- 
tled bj four housekeepers, who procured supplies from 
the peddler's cart and the post office store. There 
-svere bright fellows in the settlement, but they dis- 
pensed with much that we deem essential. Tom Jack- 
son, the Scotchman, whose whip-saw cut lumber for the 
capitol, before Wlieeler was ready, was almost a man- 
ufactory. Tom illustrated the possibility of doing 
without indispensables, but not as they do in some 
parts of Scotland. His old log house was on fire, and 
the last glass had dulled his wits. Tumbling out of 
bed, Tom, who was called Jack for brevity, pushed 
his lower limbs through the sleeves of his jacket, and 
with many an adjective declared that " some fellow 
had cut off the legs of his pantaloons." The better 
appliances of life were more remote than the seedy 
unmentionables of Tom Jackson. Everything was in 
the rough. The park was the forest primeval. Prai- 
rie fires annually crossed from marsh to marsh. Game 
was abundant. Prairie chickens and quail were shot 
in the village, where bears, wolves and deer were not 
strangers. Many years later Col. Bird's hotel stood 
in an unbroken forest, and trees that now ornament 



148 HISTOKY OF MADISON. 

the park were planted at the instance of Judge Knaj)p, 
who risked having to pay for the improvements. The 
woods abounded with game, and deer were particu- 
hirly plentiful until 1849, when the Winnebagoes 
killed 500 near the Asylum. They would have cleared 
the country, but the settlers interfered. The supply 
was important, when any man might depend on his 
skill for a dinner. The commissioners' store was not 
the pioneer. Simeon Mills was dej)uty postmaster 
and storekeeper before July, 1837. Mr. Catlin, his 
partner, says that barrels of salt and flour, hauled from 
Galena, were then worth $30 and §20 each. " Wild 
cat currency " was the circulating inedium, and the 
notes of Judge Doty were at a premium. The legis- 
lature, during the session of 1838-9, passed a ^' stay 
law" against recovering debts. The predominant 
sentiment of the community was hatred of banks. 
'Squire Seymour says that in 1839 there were two 
stores, three groceries, a steam mill, three public 
houses, and in all thirty-five buildings. Dr. Chap- 
man mentions, in 1846, Shields & Snedden, Finch & 
Blanchard, and E. B. Dean & Co., as the storekeepers 
of the villaije. Fairchild's store came next. The 
population had increased from 62 to 283. The doctor 
was told there were 400 inhabitants, but many farm- 
ers were looked on as village residents. Messersmith's 
house, on Pinckney street, was in full blast, with a 
"wet grocery" down stairs and "the tiger" above. 

The first help to Madison was the location of the 
capitol. The next, the arrival of Mr. Farwell, who 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 149 

invested money and energies in permanent improve- 
ments. His fortune was not large, and part was in- 
vested elsewhere, but he brought the reputation of 
w^ealth, and turned it to excellent account. He sys- 
tematically made known the beauties and excellences 
of the locality, and induced others to invest. His 
coming gave an impetus, labor acquired value, real 
estate changed hands, roads were opened and cleared; 
the press all over the union had paragraphs about 
Madison. We were no longer out of the world. The 
marks left by Farwell can be seen in our growth. 

Until the capital was permanently located there was 
little progress. Lobbyists hoped that another site 
would be chosen when the constitution was adopted, 
and Milwaukee wooed the legislature. Fixity of 
tenure could alone justify expenditure on property. 
Hence the slowness observable in every branch of en- 
terprise. That period of doubt had passed when Mr. 
Farwell came and invested in real estate in 1848. 
The business advantages and beauty of Madison were 
his constant themes, and he spared no expense in giv- 
ing them publicity. Kemunerative w^orks on a large 
scale were undertaken. Mendota was dammed at its 
outlet, increasing the fall two feet, and Monona, low- 
ered by the removal of an old obstruction, made a 
further improvement. Farwell became more benefi- 
cially associated with the growth of Madison than 
any of its pioneers. The inexhaustible reservoir, thus 
turned to account for industrial enterprise, created a 
demand for workmen. The lakes unfolded a promise 



150 HISTORY. OF MADISON. 

of wealth. When H. A. Tennej came, he was intro- 
duced by J. A. J^oonan to all the celebrities in a few 
minutes. The little coterie in 1845 numbered few 
besides Governor Dodge, Secretary Floyd, Judges 
Dunn, Jrvin and Miller, George P. Delaplaine and 
Mr. Mills. Manufactures and enterprise changed the 
aspect of society. Until Mr Farwell came, the place 
had never been thought worthy of a circus. When 
that distinction was attained the legislature adjourned 
to see the show. The villagers had depended on each 
other for amusements, but there had been ample 
leisure. 

Improvements were made rapidly, and golden vis- 
ions were common. The circuitous Yahara was su- 
perseded by a straight canal. At the outlet of Men- 
dota a long building contained a saw and grist mill. 
Tibbits and Gordon built their brewery below the 
mill, and the court house was commenced in 1849. 
The old jail, once let as a shoemakers' shop, no longer 
met the wants of the community. Farwell started. 
his grist and flouring mill in 1850, and opened two 
roads across the Yahara. The first dormitory at the 
university was erected in 1850, in a thicket remote 
from the village, hardly approachable. Prominent 
citizens began more beautiful homes and other im- 
provements. Men became speculative. Ditching, 
planking and planting Washington Avenue, by Mr. 
Farwell, was an act that found no competitors, but in 
other ways his conduct provoked a spirit of emula- 
tion. 




Farwell Mill. 



152 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

The years 1851-2 were prolific in the erection of 
business blocks. Public houses were found inadequate 
and the Capital House was commenced by associated 
effort. Messrs. Yilas, Fairchild and Farwell bought 
the venture in 1853, and the hotel was completed be- 
fore the fall. Madison was a paradise for builders. 
The best positions were rapidly occupied for busine-ss. 
The Presbyterian church was finished, the founda- 
tions of the Catholic church laid, and the Milwau- 
kee and Mississippi railroad company commenced 
building their depot in a growth of coppice wood on 
the spot occupied by the successors of that company. 
Early in 1854 the depot was ready, the bridge con- 
structed and the first train of passenger cars arrived. 
The celebration took place on Tuesday, May 23, 1854. 
That was a great day for Madison and the surrounding 
country. Other works were undertaken during the 
year, including a fire-proof structure for the safe 
keeping of the state registry, a new bridge across the 
Yahara, a brick church for the Baptists, the second 
dormitory of the university, the extension of Wash- 
ington Avenue, specially due to the liberality of Ex- 
Governor Farwell, and the commencement of the asy- 
lum for the insane. Men assumed that there would 
be a population of ten thousand here within two 
years. There was a woolen factory, a flouring mill, a 
grist mill, two saw mills, an oil mill, a mill for saw- 
ing stone, foundry and machine shops, two steam 
planing mills, besides other extensive undertakings, 
three daily papers and five weeklies, and a sale of 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 163 

more than $500,000 worth of produce during 1854—5. 
Seymour's Madison Directory, in 1855, gave excellent 
grounds for anticipating rapid growth. The j)opula- 
tion was nearly seven thousand. Ex-Governor Far- 
well was offering desirable lots, with credit, extending 
ten years if required, provided that purchasers should 
occupy and improve. Telegraph lines connected Mad- 
ison with the whole circle of civilization. Goods 
could be purchased at little advance on the charges in 
any metropolitan city, and some storekeepers said 
much cheaper. The American Express Company had 
an office, the Madison Mutual Ins. Co. had entered upon 
its successful career, and other comj)anies had opened 
agencies. The State Agricultural Society had rooms 
in Bruen's Block, and there was every facility for 
coming into the world with the aid of science, re- 
maining, with all the graces that art and dry goods 
could afford, and at the last being undertaken for, in 
a style replete with grace and finish, so that the end 
crowned the work. There were banks, a water cure, 
and it is difficult to imagine a want which Madison 
had not appliances for immediately satisfying. Over 
three hundred and fifty houses were built in 1854. 

The Madison Hydraulic Company, to supply water 
from Lake Mendota, was a failure; there was a dif- 
ficulty in procuring capital. The Gas Company 
seemed to be in danger, but the secretary, B. F. Hop- 
kins, leased the works, and made the enterprise a suc- 
cess. In the same year, Ex-Governor Farwell com- 
menced the residence, which was purchased as a 



MERCHANTS AND BANKEKS. 155 

"Hospital for wounded Soldiers," next occupied by 
the " Soldiers' Orphans," then given to the State 
University, and since sold to be nsed as a Theological 
Seminary and College, by the ISTorwegians. Eapidly 
as the building mania spread, every new comer was 
forced to build, if his means would permit, so con- 
tinuous was the demand. Trade prospects grew 
more encouraging, school houses were required, and 
churches well sustained. Madison became a city on 
the fourth of March, 1856, and Colonel Fairchild was 
its first mayor. The necessity for school houses was 
recognized by the city council, and $21,000 appropri- 
ated to erect schools. The City Hall was commenced 
in 1857, and the main building of the University 
was awarded to contractors, to be finished before 
ITovember, 1858. The log house erected for Eben 
Peck was saved from falling by being torn down, 
after twenty years' service. About the same time, as 
if the old " tavern stand " must be identified with 
the capital, there was a new proposition to remove. 
The capitol was dilapidated, and rivals said that as a 
new structure must be raised, the time was favorable 
for a transfer. The city authorities met the difficulty 
by donating §50,000 in bonds, towards erecting the 
present edifice. That settled the question. While 
aifairs were thus progressing, came the financial crisis 
of 1857. The crash was disastrous to Madison. Mil- 
waukee availed itself of the confusion, to renew the 
attempt to remove the seat of government. Upon 
the third reading of the bill, there was a tie vote; but 



156 



HISTORY OF MADISON. 



by an adroit movement, the measure was killed for 
the session; delay, meant death. Many associations 
of public value date from this time, among which, 
we note: "The Capitol Hook and Ladder Company, 
'No. 1;" "Mendota Fire Engine Company, No. 1;" 
"Madison Engine Company, No. 2; " the " Govern- 
or's Guards; 



" the "Madison Guards;" and the 




DSeQIWStM'S eA.POTQ)L. 



"Dane Cavalry." Already, the excitement arising 
from the troubles in Kansas, was producing an effect 
in military and other organizations. 

The postoffice had long been established, and well 
served, but railroads had given greater completeness. 
Pioneers remember when the nearest postoffice was 
at the City of the Four Lakes, from which village 
there was a road partly cleared to Fort Winnebago. 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 157 

When John Catlin and his deputy got into working- 
order, things were better. Darwin Chirk remembers 
the mail for the village being brought in a handker- 
chief. Newspapers increased the bidk, but foi* some 
months there was only an occasional copy of the 
Cooperstown Freeman^ 8 Journal^ which had a w^on- 
derful circulation from hand to hand. There would 
have been more newspapers, as there were few books, 
and whisky drinking w^as not universal; but there 
was a strike among the hands. The men that came 
with Colonel Bird signed articles, with the under- 
standing that their pay, $2.25 per day, would com- 
mence with the journey, but a proviso, that if they 
left within three months, there were to be deductions. 
The transit from Milwaukee commencing on Wednes- 
day, ended eleven days later, on Saturday, so that 
there would be a large drawback on every man's pay, 
if he should quit the work prematurely. The trouble 
arose on the questions that still agitate the Union — 
paper money and resumption. The commissioners 
were said to have been paid the amount of the con- 
gressional vote, in specie, which they had deposited 
in the bank at Green Bay, the bills of which estab- 
lishment were used for wages. The notes could be 
used with little loss in the territory, but every re- 
moval cost a " shave " of from ten to fifteen per 
cent., and even then the exchange might be made in 
"wild cat" paper, that would speedily lose all value. 
Hence the workmen demanded specie payments, and 
the commissioners deferred that operation. Many 



158 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

would liave left at once, but for the three months' pro- 
viso. A large proportion did leave as soon as that 
time had expired. There was little difficulty in suj)- 
plying their places. There was not much employ- 
ment in Wisconsin. Several strikes occurred. The 
stone cutters, at Stone Quarry Point, now McBride's, 
combined to get higher wages. 

The prices charged for everything were enormous, 
and there was little margin, unless men limited them- 
selves to bare necessaries. A man could get board for 
$5.00 per week, and lodge in the dormitory near the 
east gate of the j)ark — the club house, sleeping a]3art- 
ment and literary assembly. But as soon as ambi- 
tion suggested the desirability of personal adornment, 
or outlay for any other purj)0se, money took wings. 
Would the workman build a log house to pre^^are for 
matrimony? The barrier was not only that better 
halves were scarce and that the cost of calico was pro- 
digious. Pinneo and Butterfield would have their 
own price for shingles, .and the customer must wait 
until there was no whisky to be had on credit. 
Kails cost three shillings per pound; the brownest of 
brown sugar fetched a like price; a pound of sperm 
candles cost one dollar, and every article was propor- 
tionately dear. Xo wonder men struck for higher 
wages. Speaking of prices, we may revert to the 
charges preferred against the old commissioners and 
their contractor-partner, " Uncle Jim " Morrison. The 
amount of the two votes from congress — not from 
the territorial legislature, for that body had no money 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 159 

to appropriate — was $40,000; and wlien the terri- 
torial authorities brought suit against Morrison, it 
was proved by measurements and vouchers that the 
basement alone cost $13,000. Moses M. Strong was 
the attorney for the territory, and Mr. Fields con- 
ducted the case for Morrison, so that there was no 
lack of zeal or ability on the side of the government, 
but the action was a failure. When the population 
had settled down to industrial pursuits, upon the re- 
turn of the citizen soldiers, a directory was published, 
in 1866, by B. "W. Suckow. John Y. Smith was the 
historian. Many prominent business men, in the 
record of 1855, did not survive the crash of 1857. 
Those who had invested in real estate, found that item 
the least real among their assets. Ex-Gov. Farwell 
had specially devoted himself to that branch. It 
would be an endless task to name the failures, there- 
fore one instance may suffice for many. Tibbits and 
Gordon, a short time before the crisis, could have 
realized $60,000 beyond paying every cent ; and when 
the storm burst, so hopeless was every effort, they 
could not pay fifty cents on the dollar. Gov. Far- 
well's ruin called forth much sympathy. He had 
built up the community, spending his own money in 
a liberal spirit and inducing others to invest. Men 
thrown out of their customary labor could remember 
the generous employer who had given w^ork to hun- 
dreds. A policy less open handed might have en- 
abled him to tide over the panic, but the village 
would have been much slower in becoming a city. 



160 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

The crisis destroyed tlie value of real estate, closed up 
stores, factories, workshops and offices, threw men 
out of their gainful avocations, and brought gaunt 
famine near to many doors which had. been fondly 
thought secure from its dread approach. 

After the crisis, some mills were resumed, and in 
1866, the manufactories of the city included the flour- 
ing mill built by the ex-governor, owned by Mr. 
Briggs ; a woolen factory, the steam flouring mill of 
Manning and Merrill, and the iron foundry com- 
menced by E. W. Skinner in 1851, on the corner of 
State and Gorham streets, sold in succession to W. S. 
Huntington in 1859, and to Andrews & Co. in 186-1. 
The foundry of E. W. Skinner & Co. occupied the 
building raised by Gorham for a steam saw mill. 
The mill changed hands, and was made into a foundry 
by I. E. Brown. P. H. Turner bought the property 
in 1859, when the country was recovering from the 
crash, and Mr. Skinner became the proprietor, adding 
to his firm O. S. Willey and S. D. Hastings. That 
establishment, in 1865-'6, employed fifty men, be- 
sides canvassers all over the northwest. Beginning 
with one sorghum mill in 1861, it extended its opera- 
tions to eleven in 1862, one hundred in the following 
year, and in 1865 more than five hundred. The Cap- 
ital Iron Works, owned by J. E. Baker and operated 
by Mr. Stillman, had been entered upon in 1865. 
There were, besides, two planing mills, three cabinet 
ware manufactories, and great hopes that the peat 
beds would become factors of immense prosperity. 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 161 

The Agricultural Society, a young institution when 
Mr. Seymour j)i^^hlished his directory, had grown 
strong, and the old rooms were to be given up for the 
better location in the capitol. The patriotism of the 
society in vacating its grounds for military use ren- 
dered it impossible to liold exhibitions from 1861 to 
1863; but in September, 1861, Camp Randall having 
well nigh completed its military avocation, was avail- 
able for the arts of peace. The value of the institu- 
tion is beyond praise. It has stimulated agricul- 
tural and inventive industry and skill, largely to the 
advantage of our city and state. Abraham Lincoln, 
then not dreaming of the presidency, honored the 
society on one occasion by delivering the annual ad- 
dress. Other orators, well worthy of being particu- 
larized, are omitted for want of space. 

The State Hospital for the Insane was commenced 
under an act passed by the legislature when Gov. 
Barstow was in office, in 1854, but in consequence of 
a misunderstanding, the contractor, Andrew Proudiit, 
did not proceed. There was no blame attaching to 
him, and he recovered damages. Two years later the 
fecheme was revived, but the original name of Lunatic 
Asylum was changed to the title now in use. The 
contractor, in 1857, was compelled to abandon the 
enterprise, but the building was made ready in 1860. 
Col. S. Y. Shipman was the architect; additions were 
made in 1861. Dr. Clement was medical superinten- 
dent in 1860, and Dr. Favill assistant. In 1861, Dr. 
Yan Xorstrand became medical superintendent, and 
11 



162 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

Dr. Sawyer assistant. There was no cliange in tlie 
office of matron, wliicTi continues to be filled by Mrs. 
M. C. Halliday. 

The fact that the capitol graces Madison is due to 
the business tact of the citizens. The grant of $50,000 
in city bonds has been mentioned. The east wing 
was undertaken in 1857, and the legislature occupied 
tlie building in 1859. The west wing was com- 
menced in 186f, amid the discouragements and 
financial pressure incident to civil war, and that wing 
was finished in 1863. The north wing, the south 
wing, and the rotunda followed in the order named, • 
the dome being completed before the commencement 
of this decade. The material is not so good as the 
beauty of the structure demanded, but the commis- 
sioners did the best possible under the circumstances. 
The internal finish is admirable, and the conveniences 
afforded for the several departments are all that can 
be desired. Few persons visit Madison without mount- 
ing the wide iron stairs that lead from the upper floor 
to'the second, in which are found the chambers of the 
senate and assembly, the supreme court, the state 
library, and the still more attractive collections of the^ 
state historical society. Those who are wise and vig- 
orous mount the tholus, whence the scene is enchant- 
ing. The galleries and storerooms are reached by the 
same stairways, and one suite is occupied by a lady 
artist, whose*^ paintings and statuary reflect honor 
upon the state. 

The want of proper banks caused the first strike 



MEKCIIANTS AND BANKERS. 163 

in Madison, hence it is important to mark the career 
of our banking institutions. We were dependent on 
Green Bay, in 1837, for doubtful advantages, and 
"wild cat" currency. The early traders were bank- 
ers. Business was not sufficient to permit of money 
being made a specialty. There were only thirty-live 
buildings in Madison in 1839, and there was no bank. 
The census in 1813 showed that banks were still un- 
known, and the total of population was 312. There 
was a considerable increase of inhabitants, but no 
bank in 1848, when Wisconsin became a state, and 
permanent improvements were in order. The Wis- 
consin Fire and Marine Insurance Company j)rovoked 
the governor in 1819-50 by issuing certificates of de- 
posit, which served the purposes of banking. Great 
numbers availed themselves of the facility, denounced 
as unlawful. 

The question, "banks or no banks," Gov. Dewey 
said, in 1851, must be .dealt with. He strongly op- 
posed the banking system. The law of 1852, ap- 
proved by the people, was the answer to his fears. 
Wisconsin concluded that there should be safe banks. 
There was no lack of justification for the doubts en- 
tertained by Gov. Dewey. People could not forget 
the disastrous failures of the banks at Dubuque, Mil- 
waukee and Mineral Point ; the last of which cost the 
community more than $220,000. Those failures im- 
poverished all classes. There had been a struggle 
against " wild cat " currency from the earliest days of 
the territory, which may be summarized. The strike 



164 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

of the workmen on the capitol is matter of histor3^ 
They wanted money that would not require a perj^et- 
ual "shaving" process. An act, which passed the 
first legislature, to establish a bank in the village of 
Prairie du Chien, was disallowed by congress. Two 
years later, Gov. Dodge recommended an investiga- 
tion of the three banks at G-reen Bay, Milwaukee and 
Mineral Point, and there was a show of inquiry. The 
bank at Green Bay was pronounced insolvent, but 
that had long been patent to everybody. The Bank 
of Mineral Point was declared in flourishing circum- 
stances, although it failed soon after for nearly a quar- 
ter of a million. Gov. Dodge and Mr. E. Y. Whiton 
did their utmost to protect the people, but without 
success. The fate of the Milwaukee Bank has been 
already mentioned. There was little cause for won- 
der that many persons dreaded the banking system. 
So well defined was the sentiment, that the first con- 
vention drafted a constitution that prohibited banks, 
and the circulation of small bills. The people rejected 
that constitution, but the feeling remained powerful. 
The message of Gov. Dewey intimated his views, and 
it was not until 1852, when the peo2)le had pronounced 
on the bank j^roblem, that Gov. Farwell assented to a 
banking law. Precautions were adopted to protect 
the community from being flooded with worthless 
bank bills. 

Unauthorized bank paper required stringent legis- 
lation in 1854. Banks rapidly increased, circulating 
semi-secured bills, under the inspection of the bank 



MERCHANTS AND BANKEKS. 165 

comptroller, whose duties merged in tlie functions of 
tlie state treasurer in 1868. There were in the days 
of Gov. Bashford forty banks, but the crash year 185 T 
saw many contractions in number and amount. The 
bank comptroller declared that many institutions 
closed without loss to billholders, but the statement 
did not hold good throughout the crisis. The bank- 
ing law was amended in 1858 under Gov. Randall's 
Tegiine. There were then seven tj^-five banks, twenty- 
seven of which took their rise in 1857. There was a 
large increase of banks up to 1861, when Wisconsin 
currency was discredited in Chicago, and the farmers, 
alarmed beyond measure, held meetings to discuss 
financial dangers. Many banks that were sound were 
looked upon with disfavor. Thirty-nine were discred- 
ited. In one year there was a decrease of $3,209,000 
in the declared amount of capital invested in banking. 
The bank comptroller exacted additional securities 
from the banks that continued, and there was no great 
failure during the remainder of the war. In 1868, 
the office of bank comptroller was discontinued on the 
recommendation of the then incumbent. Gen. Eusk. 
Resuming our narration as to Madison, little time 
was lost after the law of 1852 came into force. The 
State Bank, on Pinckney street, between the postoffice 
and Bruen's Block, was opened in January, 1853, with 
a capital of $50,000, under the direction of President 
Samuel Marshall and Cashier J. A. Ellis. The Bank 
of the West began on the second floor of Bruen's 
Block, in March, 1851, with a capital of $100,000, 



166 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

and the officers were Samuel A. Lowe, President, and 
Wm. L. Hinsdale, Cashier. The Dane County Bank, 
in the same block, began its operations in October, 
with a capital of $50,000, the officers being Levi B. 
Yilas, President, Leonard J. Farwell, Yice President, 
and I^. B. Yan Slyke, Cashier. There was, in addi- 
tion, in 1855, a bank of discount and brokerage on 
Morris street, of wdiich J. M. Dickinson was man- 
ager and OAvner. Catlin, Williamson & Barwise ad- 
vertised as bankers and land agents, dating their 
establishment from 1836, just a little before Madison 
came into existence. The Merchants Bank of Madi- 
son was organized in 1856, and commenced business 
in July. A. A. Bliss, of Ohio, and C. T. Flowers 
were president and cashier. The Wisconsin Bank of 
Madison, with M. D. Miller, President, and I^oah 
Lee, Cashier, was also organized in" 1856. The Bank 
of Madison began in April, 1860, with a capital of 
$25,000. The president was Simeon Mills, and the 
cashier, J. L. Hill. The First National started into 
vigorous existence in December, 1863. The board of 
directors consisted of L. B. Yilas, S. D. Hastings, ]N". 
B. Yan Slyke, George A. Mason and Timothy Brown. 
The directory of 1866 only showed four banks in op- 
eration: The Farmers' Bank, the First N^ational, the 
Madison, and the State Bank. Many of the leaders 
had entered into new combinations; some had disap- 
peared altogether; 'N. B. Yan Slyke had become pres- 
ident of the First J^ational. The State Bank retained 
its first i^resident, but procured a new cashier, L. S. 



MERCHANTS AND BANKEES. 167 

Hanks, who still remains. The Farmers' Bank had 
offices next door west of the State Bank, and J. H. 
Slavan was its cashier. Brainard's city directory for 
1875 showed a total of five banks, comprising in addi- 
tion to two of the fonr last named, the German Bank, 
on King street, near Main, the Park Savings Bank, 
and the State Savings Institution, the last of which 
has since ended in disaster. The Bank of Madison 
failed for a considerable amount. The loss fell heav- 
ily upon all classes because of the faith reposed in the 
Unancial strength of some few names. The banks 
now operating in the city are, The First National, 
with a capital of §150,000 ; the president, N. B. Yan 
Slyke, deserves mention for the care with which he 
has presided over the finances of the State University ; 
The State Bank, with President Marshall and Cashier 
L. S. Hanks; The German Bank of J. J. Suhr, on 
King street, and The Park Savings Bank, which com- 
menced in November, 1871, and has transacted a busi- 
ness quite as large as circumstances warranted the 
proprietary in anticipating. Capital, $50,000. The 
president is Dr. J. B. Bowen, and the cashier. Dr. Jas. 
E. Baker, the offices being at the corner of Washing- 
ton avenue and Pinckney street, in a handsome block, 
the property of Dr. Baker. 

The time in which banks were dreaded by the poorer 
class and distrusted by the leaders of public opinion 
has, we may hope, passed for ever. Failures are inev- 
itable; misfortune will overtake individuals; but the 
banker ^<?r se is one of the most useful citizens. Fie 



168 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

is tlie medium hj wliicli wealth, whicli would other- 
wise be wastefully hoarded, can be brought from its 
hiding places to multiply the riches of a nation. 

The post-office, once a small log house, is now one 
of our handsomest buildings. The United States 
courts are held in the same elegant structure, on the 
third floor. Business keeps pace with increased ac- 
commodation. There are 2,400 boxes in the post-office. 
The offices of the United States marshal; the asses- 
sor and collector of internal revenue; the pension 
agent; as well as those of the clerks of courts, the 
judges and the postmaster, are conveniently grouped 
under one roof. The structure forms one of our il- 
lustrations. Postmaster E. W. Keyes has marked 
individuality. For eight years he has served as 
chairman of the Republican State Central Committee 
with such good fortune, that, when recently assailed, 
his vindication was welcomed by men of every class. 
Upon his return from Washington, his welcome home 
was an ovation in which judges and others, dissevered 
from him in political life, bore a cojispicuous share. 
Mr. Keyes studied law under George 13. Smith, and 
is a member of one of our most respected legal firms. 
His father was a pioneer of note in the early days of 
Wisconsin. Madison must feel pleased that the ex- 
ecutive ability of the party which has so long con- 
trolled the state has, from the beginning, been vested 
in a prominent Madisonian. 

The factories and business houses can only be briefly 
mentioned. Breckheimer, Fauerbach, Kodermund, 



170 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Hausmann and Hess are the brewers; there are five 
carriage and wagon building firms; two bookbind- 
eries; four book and job printers, English, and one 
German; seven carpenters and builders; one distiller 
and rectifier; thirteen dry goods houses; two exj^ress 
agencies; five furniture warehouses and factories; two 
founders and three machinists; three grain dealers; 
thirty-three grocers ; four dealers in hardware ; twen- 
ty-six hotels, including the Park, the Yilas, the Caj)- 
itol and the Rasdall, which are the principal in the 
order in which they are named ; the Madison Mutual 
and the Hekla are home insurance companies, and 
there are many agencies; there are four livery stables 
well appointed; manufacturers of and dealers in to- 
bacco are six in number; there are fifteen merchant 
tailors; two omnibus lines; three daily papers, ^ve 
w^eekly, one tri-weekly, one semi-monthly, and four 
monthly; we have one plow manufactory; two mak- 
ers of j)umps and windmills; one reaper factory; two 
sash, door and blind factories; two restaurants and 
thirty-one saloons; a soap and candle factory; a ste- 
reotype foundry; a soda water factory, and the Madi- 
son Woolen Mills. We have in all 450 business 
houses. The city has not reached the limits of its 
prosperity. Our agricultural resources are boundless, 
and the water powers have not been utilized to more 
than a tithe of their capacity. One man, whose name 
carries weight, says that we must not look to manu- 
factures for a success, Avhich will come much more 
surely and speedily to Madison as a watering place. 



MERCHANTS AND BANKERS. 171 

"VYitli proper deference, we look to botli sources for a 
great prosperity in the future. The beauty of Madi- 
son is unsurpassed, but she must also grow rich by 
her factories. 

The railroads in operation are, the Chicago, Mil- 
waukee and St. Paul, and the Chicago and I^orth- 
western. The traffic is extensive. The demand for 
hotel accommodation is so large that years since that 
fact Avas advanced as a reason why the government 
should be located elsewhere. Several jDrominent citi- 
zens procured the incorporation of a company to 
erect and furnish the elegant building which is now 
our leading hotel. The enterprise was completed in 
1871, being opened in August. The Park Hotel ar- 
rangements for the comfort of visitors have not been 
surpassed in the west, and for the number and varie- 
ty of beautiful views from every window, the whole 
world hardly contains i'ts superior. The first lessee, 
Mark H. Irish, commenced his tenancy in August, 
1871, ending in the corresponding month of this 
year. He has been succeeded by Mr. A. H. West. 
The extensive frontage on Main street is ninety-five 
and on Carroll street one hundred and sixteen feet. 
The building consists of four stories above the base- 
ment, and is seventy feet high, built of Milwaukee 
pressed brick, containing one hundred and eighteen 
sleeping rooms, twelve private parlors, one recej^tion 
room for ladies only and one for ladies and gentle- 
men, a general dining room and a ladies ordinary, 
general and private offices, bathrooms and suites of 



172 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 

apartments with batlirooms attached. It is no dis- 
paragement to the other hotels in the city to say that 
the Park is the best. Capital, sufficient for such a 
building, could only be obtained by cooperative effort, 
and the support afforded from the beginning has 
been quite satisfactory. Mr. D. K. Tenney says, 
very wisely, as to the charms of this locality: 
^' Madison and its surroundings are the handsomest 
on the face of God's green earth. This is our capi- 
tal and should be turned to profitable account. IN'o 
other place in the west possesses it. For all the pur- 
poses of pleasure seekers, for rest and recreation, for 
quiet, beauty and delight, for sporting and fishing, 
for sailing and swimming, for the intoxication and 
relief of all the higher senses, Madison has no equal ; 
none to approach her west of the sea side. Madison, 
says a writer, ' rises between her beautiful lakes, like 
a gem pillow^ed on the bosom of a queen.' But 
thousands who ought to know our attractions are ig- 
norant of them. Twenty years ago, Madison was 
written up, and people were acquainted with its 
charms but could not get here. A dozen fresh croj)S 
of tourists have sprung up since who have never 
heard of us; a new crop is on the road every year. 
Thousands would come to us for recreation, and 
spend their money here to the reviving of every chan- 
nel of trade and prosperity." 



■mi^ rn'MCmwrn mmm mwrniw-km. 



I J 







t, J' ',.; 






L* 




i Sivf 




Wkl-J -Ulll,, 



^j.liU /. Piill^i '^.Ju'- • '" 1 



mmmm. iisj m ^mmm^mLm m mmmmwrn-. 



^^ 



^^^:^--,^:i^ 






S*'-'?^ 






-- ^/. 



^ 






3^-^y ^ __X^i^ 




SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. 173 



CHAPTEE X. 

SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. 

Those wlio came to build the capitol and make 
homes in its vicinity were mainly from eastern states 
where they had enjoyed the advantages of school 
training. Many had taught school, and it was a pri- 
vation to be removed from books and other intellect- 
ual delights. Schools for the young were provided in 
due time, but the first want was an association for 
adult culture. Whist, euchre and " old sledge," were 
diligently pursued by skillful amatuers, wdio straddled 
a fallen tree all Sunday, engaged in that absorbing oc- 
cupation; but the pasteboard ministers of pleasure 
w^ould not suj)ply all demands. The pioneers estab- 
lished a debating society with stated meetings, chosen 
subjects formally announced, and a regular organiza- 
tion, that afforded better employment for leisure. The 
log shanty sleeping room in the park, already named, 
thirty feet by twenty, was the hall in which the week- 
ly tournaments of wit and wisdom were provided. 
The club house athenaeum was a popular rallying 
place, and few lyceum courses have proved more inter- 
esting. There were no attractions elsewhere to mil- 
itate against the popularity of the movement. The 
summer of 1837 saw the debates in full swing, and 



17:i: PIISTORY OF MADISON. 

tliey continued until ]N"ovember, when *all tlie work- 
men excej^t Darwin Clark were paid off. During 
the winter there were no meetings, because the de- 
baters and audience had gone to Milwaukee, and the 
understandings of the minority were exercised in a 
dancing academy, the members of which celebrated 
Madison's first New Year, with two days devotion to 
Terpsichore. The zeal of the devotees may be gathered 
from the fact, that on the second day, shoes were dis 
pensed with. Mr. Turveydrop would perhaps have 
found fault with such freedom of deportment. 

There was a renewal of the debating society in the 
spring of 1838, and many new members joined. 
Work did not absolutely cease the next winter, and 
the meetings continued. When the legislature held 
its first session in the village, home talent in the log 
shanty was pitted against imported eloquence, in the 
frozen capitol, and the more dignified assemblages 
were not always the winners. Sheriff Childs stirred 
up Morrison's pigs in the basement of tlie capitol, to 
drown the voices of some of his associates, but in the 
little athenaeum, there was choicer music, as well as 
more courtesy. The leaders in literary debate were not 
called on to compete with vivacious porkers. There 
was an idle time in the summer of '39, work was 
scarce, and the weekly meetings tended to become per- 
manent clubs, for retailing stories. Some of the mas- 
ter spirits of the " Thousand and one " were on hand. 
One of the latest efforts under the old auspices was 
George Stoner's interesting lecture on phrenology, il- 



LITERATUEE AND ART. 175 

lustrated by phenomena. The lecture was published. 
The lecturer may again be heard from. His younger 
brother, James Madison Stoner, was the first white 
boy born in the village. The Madison Institute was 
an outgrowth of the minds that originated the debat- 
ing society, an intellectual successor. Incorporated 
in 1853, its rooms were in Bruen's block, now 
Bro^\^l's; and the leading papers and magazines with 
some few books were procured for members and visi- 
tors. The winter of '51-5, was signalized by a course 
of lectures in which Horace Greeley, James E. Lowell, 
Bayard Taylor, Parke Godwin and John G. Saxe ap- 
peared. The library had then one hundred volumes, 
and other collections made up a total of about 13,000 
in the hands of the state, the executive, the univers- 
ity, the state superintendent, the historical society, 
the agricultural society, the natural history associ- 
ation, the district school, and Mr. Draper, the inval- 
uable collector and corresponding secretary of the 
historical society. The library of the Institute has 
largely increased, and is now located in the city hall, 
where it is open every afternoon, and on Saturday 
evenings. Some years have elapsed since the hist 
course of lectures was undertaken by the society, and 
it is time to fix a date for resumption. 

The first schools have been named elsewhere. Miss 
Pierce taught the girls in a building near tlic site of 
Dean's Block in 1810. There were then only thirteen 
pupils in the village. Mr. Searle opened his school 
for boys in 1839, and was succeeded by Mr. William- 



iTU HISTORY OF MADISON. 

son. David Brigliam, Jas. Morrison and Burk Fair- 
child, as school commissioners in December, 1841, set 
oiF school district 'No. 1, which was subsequently en- 
larged, including a wide area besides the village of 
Madison. In the next year, Mrs. Gay opened a select 
school for young ladies. Two years later, the public 
schools were so crowded that tuition was kept up all 
the year to meet the demand. Four months had been 
the maximum. David H. Wright was the first teacher 
to carry out the extended term. The school room had 
a kind of shelf, called a gallery, on which the smaller 
pupils were placed when the more advanced scholars 
required the floor, and ventilation, on any principle, 
was neglected as an extravagance. Miss Smedley 
taught during 1815, and a larger building was found 
indispensable. The "Little Brick," school house on 
Butler street was a palatial structure in its day, but 
that also became too small. Jerome R. Bri^ham and 
Royal Buck taught there in succession for three years. 
Madison Academy had been incorporated, the village 
made a school district, and soon afterwards the pre- 
paratory department of the state university was opened 
by Prof. Sterling. The first graded school dates from 
1850, with Jas. L. Enos, principal, at a salary of $30 
per month, and Mrs. Church had control of the 
j)rimary. Damon Y. Kilgore, superintendent, urged 
an increase and improvement of school accommoda- 
tion in 1855. There were 1,600 persons of school age 
in the district, less than half of whom were attending 
school. Three grades were established by the board, 



SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. ITT 

and there lias been no material change since. The 
school board and trustees could not agree as to an 
authorized outlay of $10,000, and plans for new 
schools languished; but two years afterwards, Mr. 
Kilgore reported eleven schools employing fifteen 
teachers, the number eligible for tuition being nearly 
two thousand. School houses in the First and Third 
wards were finished and others sanctioned, but the 
money diflicuity stood in the way. High school was 
taught in the old Congregational church, employing 
eight teachers for 133 pupils. That institution was in 
better quarters in 1860, but was then discontinued for 
w^ant of funds, and for the same reason the summer 
term of the ward schools was abandoned. Miss 
Cones procured the use of the building and furniture 
from the board, and, at her own risk for a time, con- 
ducted a high school for young ladies. When Prof. 
C. H. Allen asked the city to provide better school 
training in 1863, there were nearly 2,000 of school 
age in the district beyond the number in average 
attendance. High school was reopened with about 
one- third of its former total, and soon afterwards the 
Fourth ward school house was commenced. State 
Supt. McMynn pronounced that building " the best 
in the state," and the Second ward was supplied with 
a like structure on the same plan. The school house 
in the imiversity addition was finished in 1870. 
Three years later the high school on Wisconsin' 
avenue was erected on the old site, and is much 
praised ; but modern science suggests the desirability 
12 




Kl^.BlSQN GBTY tCBdM §OH<a(aL, 



SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. 1T9 

of more floor space and less stair climbing for all 
pupils, but more esj)ecially for girls, as more im- 
portant than architectural beauty. Widely extended 
buildings of only one story, would not be so orna- 
mental as the average of our school buildings, but 
they would be easier warmed and ventilated, and the 
results, in a physiological sense, would far outweigh 
every other consideration, among the best informed. 

The High School is at present under the direction 
of Professor Shaw, whose efficiency as Superintendent 
of the city schools is a matter for the school board as 
well as our citizens to be specially proud of. The 
denominational schools connected with the churches 
of St. Kaphaels, St. Regina and the Holy Redeemer, 
deserv^e special mention. There are excellent j)rivate 
schools, whose merits can only be glanced at. li. F. 
George is the princij)al of the Commercial School on 
Wisconsin Avenue and Johnson Street, and the l^orth- 
western Business College in Ellsworth's block, of 
which Messrs. Wilmot, Demmijig & Boyd are projDri- 
etors, are schools of high standing. Add to these 
several institutions the college just opened by the 
^Norwegian church in the old Farwell residence, and 
it will be seen that the sum total of facility for tui- 
tion in this city is scarcely excelled by any other 
place of its size in the Union. 

The Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Let- 
ters was originated by a convention in the state agri- 
cultural rooms in February, 1870. The purposes 
aimed at are explained by the title, and the spirit in 



180 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

which the work has been prosecuted, justifies the as- 
sumption that " the foundations may be laid for an 
institution that shall be of practical utility, and a last- 
ing honor to the state." The transactions of the acad- 
emy have been published by votes of the legislature, 
and among the many valuable papers are some that 
would do honor to any institution of the kind; but 
which would hardly commend themselves to the di- 
rectors of the daily press as popular reading, from the 
recondite matter introduced. Madison has given a 
large j)roportion of the officers of the academy for the 
current year. Professor Davies of the State Univer- 
sity is General Secretary; Prof. S. H. Carpenter, 
Yice President for Department of Speculative Philos- 
ophy; Dr. J. W. Hoyt, Yice President for Depart- 
ment of Fine Arts; Gen. Geo. P. Delaplaine, Treas- 
urer; C. ]^. Gregory, A. M., Librarian; and E. T. 
Sweet, M. S., Director of Museum. 

The State University has added largely to the ag- 
gregate of literary culture, for which our city stands 
preeminent. It is our purpose to name some of the 
more prominent among our men and women of letters, 
briefly noting their contributions, and it is due to the 
University that we begin with a sketch of its accom- 
lished president. John Bascom was born in Genoa, 
N. Y., on the first day of May, 1827, as we learn from 
'^ Durfee's Biographical Annals of Williams College." 
He is consequently now in his fiftieth year. Having 
fitted for college at Homer Academy, N. Y., he en- 
tered "Williams " in 181:5, and graduated four years 



SCHOOLS, LITERATUKE AXD ART. 181 

later. Severe study, and the necessity to teacli wliile 
pursuing his course as a student, weakened his visual 
organs, as in 1853 he partially lost the use of his eyes 
so that he was dependent on others for his reading, 
and for five years sight was not fully restored. Stead- 
fastly pursuing his studies, Mr. Bascom graduated at 
Andover Theological Seminary in 1855, and was 
called to the professorship of rhetoric in Williams 
College. In the year 1858, he published a work on 
^' Political Economy," to which his mind had been 
specially directed, while serving as tutor at Williams 
College in 1852-3. Four years later his second book 
appeared, a treatise on "^Esthetics," followed in 1865 
by a volume on "Khetoric," and in 1869 by "Psy- 
chology," a work treating one of the most engrossing 
subjects of modern thought. " Science, Philosophy 
and Eeligion" in 1871, the " Philosophy of English 
Literature" in 1874, and the "Philosophy of Re- 
ligion" in 1876, may be taken as evidences that the 
lesson of five years in semi-darkness has not been 
construed into an excuse for taking things easily. 
The university duties devolving upon President Bas- 
com are onerous, but they do not exhaust his mental 
force, and the superfluous energy of the scholar finds 
expression in additions to our literature, such as will 
cause the name of the writer to be remembered in 
future years. President Bascom is a diligent con- 
tributor to some of our leading quarterlies. 

Prof. R. B. Anderson has long been a successful 
author. His graphic work, amplified from a lecture, 



182 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

"America not discovered by Columbus," won recog- 
nition on both sides of the Atlantic. It is now out of 
print, but a new^ edition is demanded, and may be 
looked for shortly. " l^orse Mythology " has gone 
through its second edition, and a third is in the press. 
" Yiking Tales of the IN'orth" is just out, and the de- 
mand attests the author's reputation. Besides these 
works, by which Mr. Anderson is best known in this 
country, he has produced many pamphlets and larger 
works in the ISTorwegian tongue, including "Jule- 
gave," or " Yule Gift," and " Den I^orske Maal-sag," 
or " The Korse Language-Question." His transla- 
tion from the Swedish of the " Handbook for Char- 
coal Burners," a combination of prize essays on the 
subject, has attracted much attention. Mr. Anderson 
is professor of the Scandinavian languages, and libra- 
rian of the State University, in which capacity he has 
twice visited Europe, and will repeat the tour shoi-tly, 
as a member of the Congres des American] stes, wdiich 
will assemble in the Duchy of Luxembourg. The 
professor is a lecturer of considerable merit, hon- 
orary member of the Iceland Literary Society, partici- 
pating in all the publications of that association, Scan- 
dinavian editor of McClintock & Strong's Cyclopedia, 
and of Kiddle & Schem's Educational Cyclopedia; 
contributor to numberless Scandinavian papers in 
!N^orway and this country, and well known as a re- 
viewer for magazines, of acknowledged merit. Cir- 
cumstances have brought the professor in contact with 
many of the world's most renowned scholars and poets. 



SCHOOLS, LITERATUKE AND ART. 1S3 

siicli as Max Miiller and Whitney, Bjornson and Long- 
fellow, and Ills collection of autographs is most inter- 
esting. 

Prof. ^Y. F. Allen was associated with T. P. Allen 
in producing the " Handbook of Classical Geography," 
in 1862, and with Chas. P. Ware and Lucy McK. Gar- 
rison in a volume of " Slave Songs," in 1867. In 
1870, Mr. Allen produced an " Introduction to Latin 
Composition." Joined with Jos. H. Allen, in 1868 
and 1869, he wrote a " Manual of Latin Grammar," 
*' Latin Lessons " and a " Latin Peader," and during 
the curi-ent decade, associated with Jos. H. Allen and 
Jas. B. Greenough, has added to our literature six 
works on Cicero's Select Orations, De jSe?iectute, Sal- 
lust's Catiline, Yirgil, Ovid and Caesar. Prof. Allen 
ranks among the most prominent Latin scholars in 
America, and is a constant contributor to The Nation^ 
North American Bevieiv, and other such publications. 

Prof. S. H. Carpenter was born at Little Falls, Her- 
kimer County, I^. Y., and at the age of twenty-one 
graduate \ in Pochester University, receiving from 
that institution in 1855 and 1871, the degrees of A. 
M. and LL. D. The professor commenced his career 
in our State University as a tutor in 1852, and has 
been identified with the interests of education ever 
since. His publications can only be glanced at, but 
their titles are descrij^tive : "Education a Mental 
Possession," "The Moral Element in Education," 
" Education a Necessity in a Free Government," " The 
Evidences of Christianity," "University Education," 



184 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

"The Drama," "An Address to tlie State Teachers' 
Association," " The Eelations of Skepticism to Schol- 
arship," " Conflict between the Old and the 'New Ed- 
ncation," "Metaphysical Basis of Science," "Relation 
of Educational Institutions," " Philosophy of Evolu- 
tion," " Industrial Education," " The Educational 
Problem," "Historical Sketch of the University," 
" Our National Growth," and still unpublished an 
address on " The T>iity and Difficulty of Independent 
Thinking." Prof. Carpenter's " English of the Four- 
teenth Century," and " Introduction to the Study of 
Anglo Saxon," cannot fail to live as standard works; 
and he has translated from the French of Emile de La- 
veleye, " The Future of Catholic :N'ations" and " Po- 
litical Economy and Socialism," besides contributing 
largely to periodicals of the highest type. 

Dr. James Davie Butler, LL. D., was born in Rut- 
land, Yt., and graduated at Middlebury College at 
twenty-one. Having studied theology in Yale and 
Andover, he next became a traveler in Europe, Asia 
and Africa, extending his researches into Polynesia 
by visiting the Sandwich Islands. Returning to his 
alTiia mater, he became a tutor in Middlebury College, 
and, in succession, professor in I^orwich University, 
Wabash College, and in our University, in all, about 
eighteen years. He officiated as a Congregational pas- 
tor at Wells River, Yt., Peabody, Mass., and at Cincin- 
nati, O. He has published " Armsmear," a memorial 
of Col. Colt; " Letters From Abroad," which appeared 
in Boston, Kew York, Cincinnati, Chicago and Mad- 



SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. 



185 



ison, and valuable papers in Kittcrs Cydoj)edia Bihll- 
otheca Sacra^ Quarterly Register^ and in connection 
with the American Institute and our State Historical 
Society. The professor is well known as a lecturer, 
and his occasional sermons are always listened to with 
profound interest. 

Lyman C. Draper, A. M., LL. D., has rather aimed 
at preparing material for future historians, than at 
becoming a writer of books ; but he has won for him- 
self the title of " The Western Plutarch." His atten- 
tion was early directed to the want of efficient collec- 
tion, which prevented masses of facts, once well known, 
from being authenticated for historical use, and much 
of his life has been devoted to the rectification of that 
class of errors. Circumstances have aided him in 
some degree in becoming acquainted with notabilities, 
and his personal reminiscences of La Fayette, De 
Witt Clinton, Gov. Cass, Chas. Carroll, Daniel Boone, 
and others equally celebrated in their several spheres, 
would make one of the most readable volumes of the 
day. His collection of MSS. is certainly the most 
valuable in the west, and in the hands of a skillful 
writer, might be wrought into works of engrossing 
interest and great literary value. Mr. Draper has 
seen service in the field; has been justice of the peace 
in ISTorthern Mississippi, editor of a newspaper, farmer, 
and since his removal to this state, has been identified 
with the State Historical Society, as we have else- 
where recorded. As state superintendent of public 
instruction, his labors deserve honorable mention. 



186 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

His published works consist of pamplilets and school 
reports, evincing much research, the seven volnmes of 
collections of the Historical Society with valuable 
notes, " The Helping Hand," a work in which Mr. 
Croffut assisted, and two works are now ready for the 
press; one, in which Mr. Butterfield was his colaborer, 
entitled "Border Forays," and, though last, not least, 
"The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence," a 
book fall of careful comj^ilations on the daring asser- 
tion of independence enunciated at Mecklenburg, IsT. 
C, more than twelve months prior to the time from 
which we date our centennial. 

Dr. J. ^Y. Hoyt, A. M., M. D., LL. D., is already 
known to our readers as editor of " The Wisconsin 
Farmer^'' but he has served the state in numerous 
other capacities. Worthington, Ohio, was his place 
of nativity, and in that state he was Professor of 
Chemistry and Medical Jurisprudence in the Cincin- 
nati College of Medicine, as also, at a later date. Pro- 
fessor of Chemistry and Natural History in Antioch 
College. The doctor was Secretary of the Wisconsin 
State Agricultural Society ; was founder and President 
of the Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters, besides 
holding many other appointments of honor and use- 
fulness, which defy enumeration. His services to the 
State University alone would require more space than 
we have at our disposal for this brief notice. His 
works consist of thirteen annual reports of the State 
Agricultural Society, and other reports on the re- 
sources and progress of Wisconsin; on the London 



SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND ART. 187 

International Exhibition; on tlie Paris Exposition 
Uni'versellej on the Ivaih^oad Commission; as chair- 
man of the National University Committee; a work 
on "University Progress;" and numerous mono- 
graphs, industrial, educational and scientific. The 
doctor has a well stored mind, and its resources are 
ever at his fullest command for the work of the hour 
and the age. 

Mr. H. A. Tenney has figured in many other chap- 
ters of our history, and he must not be forgotten 
among our authors. To him are due the earliest 
sketches extant of Dane and Pierce counties, and in- 
numerable contributions preserved by the State His- 
torical Society. He has been a Wisconsin man from 
a very early date. He has now almost ready for the 
press, a volume on "Early Humor in "Wisconsin," 
which should have a good sale. 

D. S. Durrie, whose unobtrusive labors in the 
State Historical Library have been too little noticed, 
deserves more than a passing mention. He has long 
filled the position of Librarian. His works consist 
of the "Bibliography of Wisconsin;" "Early Out- 
posts of Wisconsin;" "Bibliographic Genealogy of 
America;" "The Steele Family;" "Holt Geneal- 
^^1\ " " Utility of the Study of Genealogy; " " His- 
tory of the Four Lake Country;" and parts of the 
"History of Wisconsin;" of Iowa and Missouri. 
Mr. Durrie compiles with faithfulness, and has a con- 
science in his literary labors. 

C. W. Butterfield was born in July, 1824, and has 



188 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

prosecuted his literary labors witli miicli good for- 
tune. His principal works are the " History of Sen- 
eca County," Ohio; "A System of Grammatical and 
Rhetorical Punctuation;" "Crawford's Expedition 
against Sandusky, in 1782;" and in conjunction 
with Mv. Draper, Mr. Butterfield has produced " Bor- 
der Forays." A new edition of Crawford's Expedi- 
tion may be expected shortly from the pen of this 
able writer. 

Rev. J. B. Pradt has long been a resident in this 
state. He has issued ten volumes of the Wisconsin 
Journal of Education^ from 1860 to 1865, as editor 
and publisher, and from 1871 to the present time, as 
co-editor and publisher. Mr. Pradt has also assisted 
in issuing eight annual reports of the Department of 
Public Instruction; and an edition of the Constitu- 
tions of the United States and Wisconsin, with his- 
torical notes, questions and glossary. 

Pev. Ames C. Pennock came to "Wisconsin in 1844, 
and four years later, joined the M. E. Conference, 
preaching in this state and in Minnesota until 1862, 
when in consequence of impaired health, it became 
necessary to abate his labors. Mr. Pennock has had 
experience as a farmer, merchant, agent, author, 
editor and newspaper correspondent. He is now a 
publisher of books as well as a writer. His mind 
revels alike in poetry and prose, and those who have 
encountered him in theological controversy will long 
remember the event. He has published a brief, but 
very exhaustive work, on " Tlie Fall and the Rescue 



SCHOOLS, LITERATUKE AND ART. 189 

of Man;" lias now in course of publication, "The 
Problem of Evil, or Theory and Theology," and has 
written a volume of poetry. 

Professor Nicodemus has now ready for the press a 
translation of " Weisbach's Engineer," a work of 
admitted value, which cannot fail to be recognized as 
a standard production. The translation from the 
Swedish, by Professor Anderson, of Svedelius' 
" Handbook for Charcoal Burners," was edited by 
Mr. Kicodemus, who contributed copious notes from 
the writings of acknowledged authorities. Many 
articles in the published proceedings of the Academy 
of Sciences, Arts and Letters are due to his industry, 
and other additions to our current literature might 
be given, were it necessary to complete the catalogue. 

Prof. Searing, superintendent of public instruction,, 
was one of the faculty of Milton College, in this state, 
prior to his election to the office now worthily filled 
by him. His published works consist of an address 
on the " Character of Abraham Lincoln," delivered 
shortly after the assassination of the martyred presi- 
dent, and a school edition of Yirgil's Eneid. The 
great success of the book last named, led to the pre- 
paration of an edition of Homer's Iliad^ which was 
nearly ready for publication when Mr. Searing was 
elected. In consequence of his call to the unsought 
honor, the book has not yet seen the light, but its ap- 
pearance may be anticipated shortly, and its success 
looked upon as assured, so great and well applied has 
been the labor, and so exceptionally elegant will be the 



190 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

illustrations. Prof. Searing deserves liigli honor for 
tlie strenuous personal efforts by which he has earned 
his own advancement in the department of letters. 
His official services have been properly noticed else- 
where. His career has been highly meritorious, and 
substantially successful ; he is yet only on the thresli- 
hold of his literary eminence. 

Mr. John Y. Smith, who wrote a history of Madi- 
son, in brief, for one of the earlier Directories, was a 
writer of great force, and fineness of intellect; but 
want of space precludes a becoming notice of his 
merits. 

Col. Slaughter has been frequently mentioned in 
our pages, and it remains only to say that as a writer, 
he is a gentleman of high repute. He is now engaged 
on a series of Wisconsin Biographies, which will 
widely extend his fame. 

Jas. J\. Stuart is a native of South Carolina, where 
his forefathers settled in the first half of the eighteenth 
century, hence probably his adhesion to the " lost 
cause " for which he fouo^ht. His scientific trainino; 
was procured in Harvard, his first instruction in art 
in the studio of Joseph Ames of Boston. After some 
years of school teaching in Savannah, he was enabled 
to prosecute his art studies in the academies of Mu- 
nich and Carlsruhe. Mr. Stuart came to Madison in 
1872, and many of his pictures have commanded ad- 
miration. Judges Dunn and Paine, in the supreme 
court rooms, are from his studio, and he has also 
painted Gen. Allen, of Oshkosh, Judges Miller, 



SCHOOLS, LITERATURE AND '.ET. 191 

Smitli and Jonatlian E. Arnold, of Milwaukee, besides 
others whose names could not be given without ex- 
press permission. The fineness of touch for which 
Mr. Stuart is justly ]3raised does not detract in any 
degree from the faithfulness of his presentations. 

It may be thought that the ladies should have been 
preferred to the gentlemen in noting the literary and 
artistic workers in this capital; we propose always to 
keep the more precious to the last. Miss Ella Au- 
gusta Giles, authoress of "Bachelor Ben," and " Out 
From the Shadows," has been honored with copious 
notices in metropolitan journals accustomed to wield 
the scalpel of criticism- with little mercy. Her books 
survive such scrutiny, and further contributions from 
her pen may be anticipated. Miss Giles has now 
assumed the role of editress of the Ifiliva iihee Maga- 
zine^ which with the commencement of the coming 
year will put on a new dress, and become much more 
widely known as the " Midland." 

Mrs. Sara C. Bull has recently entered the field of 
literature, and has already established for herself a 
brilliant record by her excellent translation of Jonas 
Lie's " The Pilot and his Wife." The leading peri- 
odicals on both sides of tlie Atlantic are loud in their 
praises of Mrs. Bull's book, and indeed she has chosen 
for translation a novelist whose pictures of !N^orse life 
cannot be surpassed. They are like the music of Die 
Bull played by Ole Bull himself, or like sky rockets 
that burst in the zenith and fall in gentle showers of 
fiery rain. The Pilot and his Wife is already in its 



192 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

second edition, and more books may soon be looked 
for from Mrs. Bull's pen. 

Miss Ella Wheeler has won triumphs as an author- 
ess in this city, and her residence in Dane county ena- 
bles us to include her name among the LitUrateuTS 
that adorn the history of Madison. The young poet- 
ess came before the public first in JSTew York in 1873, 
when " Drops of Water " was the significant title of 
her work. During the same year, and almost at the 
same time, her second book " Shells" was being pub- 
lished in Milwaukee, so that east and west were alike 
doing homage to her genius. " Maurine," her third 
production, has evoked much' friendly criticism, but 
we believe that " The Messenger," a piece published 
by Harper and Brothers, IN'ew York, will hardly be 
excelled by any of her later ^productions, bright and 
telling as they prove. 

Miss Wilhelmina Fillans, an artist of considerable 
merit, has been already referred to as occupying a 
siiite of rooms in the capitol; but since that mention 
was made. Miss Fillans has removed to other quarters. 
The lady comes of a family of artists, and her skill is 
beyond question. Many of her paintings grace the 
homes of Madison, and her modelings are no less fine. 
It would have afforded us much pleasure to have 
named a few of her works, but the lady's modesty for- 
bids us that pleasure, and we can only refer our read- 
ers to her studio, where her labors will speak for 
themselves. 



194 HISTOEY OF MADISON. 



CHAPTEE XI. 

MADISON HOMES. 

Our title would justify a long chapter, but the limits 
allotted to our lucubrations have been reached, and we 
deny ourselves the pleasure of communicating to our 
readers many interesting details compiled with care. 
It would be strange if the charms of scenery, which 
have been praised by all observers from every part of 
the Union; which determined the location of the Cap- 
ital and its retention here; and which won the ad- 
miration of the Antoctlionous mound builders so com- 
pletely, that they abode here for several centuries 
until war drove them out; had not induced many of 
our private citizens to erect elegant residences and 
almost palatial homes. Architectural beauties salute 
the sight on every hand in such numbers that it would 
be an endless task to name them all, and invidious to 
make selections. We content ourselves with doing 
homage to the general bea,uty which richly deserves 
more particular praise, and pass on to note the several 
societies which in a secondary sense become homes to 
wayfarers and new-comers; such as Goldsmith has im- 
mortalized in the line referring to the wanderer: 

" Remote, unfriended, melancholy, slow; " 

who but for such institutions would find no welcome 



MADISON HOMES. 195 

among strangers, but by every incident would be com- 
pelled to remember with sorrow the home of earlier 
days, hard to be effaced by new associations. Poor 
Oliver realized the fine poetic sensibility which made 
his traveling experience a 

" Ceaseless pain, 
That drag's at each remove a lengthening chain." 

The old time prejudices have been well nigh removed 
in this vast caravanserai of nations and peoples, and 
every man who comes well vouched for, finds a home 
that may be made as happy as his first. 

Society in Madison has been largely made up of 
men who have represented other parts of the state in 
some capacity, and coming here, have been tempted 
to prolong a temporary sojourn into a life residence. 
Men who can command the suffrag^e of their fellows 
must, as a rule, possess some excellence. The congre- 
gation of such minds makes a city a metropolis. The 
state officers make their homes in Madison and are, as 
a rule, handsomely lodged. The city officials include 
not a few who began adult life in this settlement, and 
have grown up with their surroundings, accumulating 
wealth with sound ideas as to life's enjoyment. The 
same may be said to a large extent of other officials, 
and it is still more true of our professional classes. 
The development of elegant tastes has resulted in 
beautifying this city until it challenges comparison 
with others of like dimensions and wealth, certain 
of victory. 



196 HISTOKY OF MADISON. 

The masonic fraternity dating its claim on Imman 
regard from Solomon's temple, and the fidelity of the 
Grand Master, Hiram Abiff, has three blue lodges, 
one Royal Arch Chapter, one Council, and one Com- 
mandery in this city. Brethren of the mystic tie 
make the five points of fellowship a sober reality in 
this region, and where the hailing sign becomes neces- 
sary, there is never a lack of response to the call. 
Labor and refreshment are alike regarded as sacred 
duties, and free and accepted Masons who understand 
the golden rule of life make the society which they 
tincture a desirable place of abode. Masonic Lodges, 
and the celebrations arising therefrom, were among 
the earliest social gatherings in this community, and 
they retain preeminence. Other organizations founded 
on the same general idea of brotherhood have a large 
aggregate of members. Knights of Pythias are well 
represented. Sons of Temperance abound in good 
works; and Good Templars are more numerous than, 
and as well organized, as the Templars of old time. 

The Odd Fellows have three Lodges and one En- 
campment; the Druids have a Grove ; the Germans have 
a Scheutzen Club, a Msennerchor, a Dramatic Society, 
a Turn Yerein, a Literary Society and other associa- 
tions. There are also a Grand Army of the Republic ; 
a County Bible Society and other affiliations so num- 
erous in connection w^ith the several churches, that no 
person desiring fellowship can long remain a stranger. 
The city has innumerable attractions for every variety 
of taste. Tliat must be a strano-e intellect that would 



MADISON HOMES. 197 

find nothing congenial in the numberless societies 
that open their circle to the worthy; nor any objects 
of interest in the vast collections in the rooms of the 
Historical Society, the Agricultural Association, and 
the Academy. The schools and churches have been 
named in their order, but their social value as organ- 
izations would deserve whole pages of comment and 
laudation. Our illustrations must afford some faint 
idea of the architectural beauty of this city, and the 
discreet reader will argue from the less to the greater. 
The University overlooking Lake Mendota tells its 
own story. Lake Monona, and the vessels of the 
Yacht Club furnish a handsome picture. One church 
must stand as the representative of many. The streets 
and principal stores are not entirely wanting in our 
illustrations. The view of Lakeside over Monona is 
beautiful as a scene in dreamland. The old house of 
Eben Peck, long since torn down, reappears as it 
stood in 1837. The view of the Post Office and City 
Hall, with Lake Mendota in the distance, is a charm- 
ing representation which, in a general way, will give 
the distant observer an idea of the capital of Wis- 
consin. The presentation of the Capitol itself comes 
as near as the circumstances will permit to a repro- 
duction of the original; and but that the expense 
would have been such as to have largely increased the 
selling price of the work, it would have been a pleasure 
to have completed the pictorial circle, so that the 
artist's pencil and graver might have done justice to 
beauties which the skill of the writer fails to present 
in adequate language. 




(Or Third Lake) 

LOOKING TOWARD MADISOH. 



VISITOES AND THEIR PLEASURES. 199 



CHAPTER XII. 

VISITORS AND THEIR PLEASURES. 

FuRSiJiT of health has brought thousands to this 
city, who have found hygienic conditions not often 
combined. Beauty is a large element in relieving the 
pressure of nervous complaints by calling attention 
from real and assumed disorders. That charm is 
here in the superlative degree, and, in addition, a 
mild and salubrious atmosphere. There are exquisite 
nooks for bathing, and enclosures in which art has 
assisted nature in making the pellucid waters attract- 
ive, so that swimmer and nonswimmer can enjoy the 
health giving plunge. The amateur fisherman could 
hardly find better sport than here, and while patiently 
waiting for a bite, his eyes can feast on beautiful im- 
pressions, which can never be effaced. The lakes in- 
vite rowing and sailing; the shores unfold new at- 
tractions with every change, and steamboats make ex- 
cursions with modest speed, lest visitors should not 
enjoy the landscape inclosing the crystal gem. Citi- 
zens propose to improve the drives which girdle the 
city and lakes. One suggests a road round Fourth 
Lake, following the shore, which would give "a 
drive of twenty-five miles, absolutely unrivaled for 
beauty." A second proposition contemplates a new 



200 HISTOKY OF JVIADISON. 

lake shore drive of five miles, to tlie charming site of 
the State Hospital for the Insane, and there is good 
hope that the idea will be realized. The beautiful 
university drive is likely to be extended to Picnic 
Point. There are rural retreats, easy of access from 
this capital, which shut out the city, yet within an 
hour's transit, all the advantages of social science 
and material advancement can be reached. Visitors 
are attracted by our university and pleased with our 
graded schools. The church spires pointing to the 
stars challenge admiring notice. The railroads and 
postoffice, with always increasing facilities, and the 
telegraj^h wires by which the world is girdled, bespeak 
the obedient spirit of science, more apt than the fabled 
Ariel. The Capitol, whose form of beauty compels 
admiration as soon as the eye lights on Madison, 
offers substantial evidences of civilization connecting 
us with the great world which we daily miniature. 
Here, in the several libraries, are choice books, news- 
papers and periodicals; the best works of juriscon- 
sults; the treasures of common and civil law, ex- 
pressed essences of knowledge from the days of 
Justinian to our own; and by their side the liveliest 
essays of magazine contributors, separating them from 
works of profound historians and scientists. On the 
desks are our best newspapers, in many respects the 
foremost in the world, filled with vigorous assaults of 
partisan editors, who anticipate the final cataclysm 
unless their measures and their men are sustained; 
yet reassuring us by the news flashed along the wires, 




A.MeLiW©RIV« S?A.f6©M. 



202 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

through, mid air and under the sea, which, in reveal- 
ing the condition of every country on the earth, from 
I^ew York and London to Japan and "Far Cathay," 
unfold the fact that a thousand such jeremiads daily 
reach the limbo of nonfulfillment. 

It has been objected that our population of ten 
thousand has not originated a line of steamboats that 
will compare, for beauty, power and conv^enience, with 
the Atlantic glories of Cunard or White Star; but the 
Scutanawheqtion possesses a name that rivals the 
finest on the sea, and our boats, if not numerous and 
large as the Spanish armada, are equal to the occasion 
and will increase with the demand. 

The names of celebrities who have visited us, as 
revealed by the books of the Park, the Yilas House, 
and the Capitol, would fill a volume, but few would 
peruse the record. Prince I^apoleon, who passed 
through our city to Saint Paul, accompanied by his 
beautiful wife, the daughter of Yictor Emanuel, II Re 
Galantuomo, as Garibaldi named him, could hardly 
be considered our visitor, for he and his suite were 
closely cooped within locked doors, during the stay, 
but that could not prevent a cheer of welcome before 
the distinguished Prince j^arvenu moved on. It is 
more to our purpose that such men as Secretary Sew- 
ard and Charles Francis Adams have been our guests, 
and raised their eloquent voices to infuse their spirit 
into the people. The balcony of the Yilas House, 
and the eastern steps of the capitol had on that day 
immense assemblies. Frederika Bremer was for 



YISITORS AND THEIR PLEASURES. 203 

months a delighted visitor to our city and lakes. 
Louis J. D. Agassiz, the eminent Swiss naturalist, of 
whom Whipple says: "He is not merely a scientific 

thinker, he is a scientific force. The immense 

influence he exerts is due to the energy and geniality 
which distinguished the nature of the man. He in- 
spires as well as performs; communicates not only 
knowledge, but the love of knowledge." He was. an 
appreciated and appreciative visitor, and many in this 
city can testify to those truths from personal experi- 
ence, who grieved as for a dear friend when Agassiz 
died. The magician Ole Bull, whose wand is the 
wonder working bow^, has on the shores of those lakes 
a home, to which the demands of a music loving 
world make him a rare visitor; but when leisure on 
this side of the Atlantic j)ermits, he can forget Ole- 
ana in the w^itcheries of this region. The praise be- 
stowed upon Ole Bull by Longfellow in his " Tales of 
a Wayside Inn," beggar any tribute that we could 
render. We content ourselves with claiming the dis- 
tinction that belongs to Madison. Horace Greeley 
and Bayard Taylor visited us as lecturers ; during the 
same season Jas. Russel Lowell, Parke Godwin, John 
G. Saxe, and other national celebrities were with us, 
and their appreciative words are treasured. Sumner 
lectured here on the question, "Are We a J^ation?" 
Gen. Sherman was with us as the guest of Col. Rey- 
nolds, w^hen the famous "March to the Sea" was the 
topic of all talkers; and Philip Sheridan, not less 
famous for his dashing exploits with cavalry, could 



204: HISTORY OF MADISOX. 

testify to the charms of which we boast. Hardly a 
clay passes without the advent of some celebrity, at- 
tracted by our Historical Society, the reputation of 
our University, the beauty of the country, or the health 
giving charm that more than all else should vastly 
increase our popularity. There is hardly a city of 
the same dimensions in the Union that can show so 
excellent a record as to the number and eminence of 
its medical practitioners, side by side with such hy- 
gienic conditions in the resident population. Fain 
would we say more concerning the attractions which 
concentrate on this lovely spot, but space forbids. 
This will be, as its excellences become known and 
improved, by added wealth and numbers, one of the 
fairest cities in the • M ; our parks, eloquent with 
the plash of waters from numerous fountains, musical 
with the charms of art and nature, will hereafter 
remind the traveler of the vast outlay with which the 
Grande Monarqiie built up a far inferior beauty at 
Yersailles. "We have no palace of marble, such as he 
has left, no Grande nor Petite Trianon, no treasure 
of a nation spent in lakes and mountains ; but there 
are glories from the hand of nature herself, grouped 
in this county, and visible from this spot, that beggar 
the triumphs of art, and we cannot better close this 
brief tribute than by saying to ^vhosoever can appre- 
ciate all that is most excellent, come and help us to 
make the setting, worthy of the gem. 



MOrNDS, MONUMENTS, CAVES, ETC. 207 



CHAPTER XIII. 

MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, CAVES AND RELICS. 

We live surrounded by monuments wliich point to 
the almost forgotten past, telling of our remote prede- 
cessors, the mound builders. The site occupied by 
our city was for a prolonged term, thousands of years 
ago, the abode of a people whose semi-architectural 
remains connect them with the civilizations of Aztecs 
and Toltecs, in Mexico and Central America. The 
Teocallis or temples, and the Pueblos or village 
houses, preserved by the more enduring cliaracter of 
their materials, in some cases, as at Palenque, Copan, 
TJxmal, long buried in impassable forests, are the 
wonder of the explorer; our monuments are only less 
complete. Where the central building of our State 
University stands, was a large mound crowning the 
eminence, but necessity compelled its removal. In 
other supremely beautiful positions, such mounds, all 
that remain of more extensive erections, bespeak 
identity in taste and judgment between the aboriginal 
occupants and ourselves. St. Louis was once called 
Mound City, because of the large number of emi- 
nences standing where that city unfolds her vast pro- 
portions. There are mound cities in many of the 
states. Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee, among oth- 



208 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

er cities indicate like agreement with the building 
of this city upon a spot on which the mound builders 
congregated. That fact is repeated in almost every 
large town in the Mississippi valley. Kapoleon told 
his soldiery that from the pyramids, four thousand 
years looked down upon them ; and not forgetting the 
w^ords of Fuller, that those structures, " doting with 
age, have forgotten the names of their founders," it 
seems probable that this continent had an older civili- 
zation than that of the Ptolemies. Possibly this was 
the first habitable land then connected with Euroj^e and 
Asia, and the home of a people who never dreamed of 
submergence by the barbarism, wdiich has omitted to 
preserve, where it has not exjDunged their records. 
There are strange agreements, and variations no less 
curious, between some of the Egyptian structures and 
our mounds. Should the sands that flow on that land as 
the sea once rolled over Sahara, ebb back from the 
works which they partially cover, more significant 
resemblances might apjDcar. We find no traces to 
determine the relationship between the people, unless 
the Ethiopians from Arabia Felix were the founders 
of both civilizations; but the likeness and unlike- 
ness of their works afibrd evidences that similar ideas 
prevailed in the same or succeeding cycles in widely 
distant quarters. The discovery of America by Co- 
lumbus, and by his predecessors, the Norsemen, are 
affairs of yesterday, compared with the primitive oc- 
cupation to which the mounds bear testimony, dat- 
ing from thousands of years before the Christian era. 



MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, GATES, ETC. 209 

Settlements in this region must have been large, so 
great were the remains that had defied " the tooth and 
razure of oblivion," until our civilization, with build- 
ings and cultivation of the soil, made demolition 
rapid. Animal shaped mounds were here first noted. 
Dr. Laj)ham wrote on this subject to the papers in 
1836; subsequently, Mr. Taylor communicated to the 
Am^erican Journal of Science, describing eminences 
with outlines of man and the lower animals, at dis- 
tances ranging six, ten and twelve miles from the 
four lakes. So marked were the differences between 
our mounds and those in other states, that many con- 
cluded they were relics of a distinct race; but inves- 
tigation showed agreements between the structures 
that dot the country from the great lakes to Mexico 
and Central America. Some of the curious mounds 
in this region that were in existence at recent dates, 
or are now, may be mentioned ; but a complete record 
will not be attempted. Visitors coming to explore, 
will find no lack of indications to put them on the 
track of discovery. Dr. Lapham, assisted by the re- 
sources of the Antiquarian Society and the Smith- 
sonian Institution, omitted surveys which would have 
been as interesting as any in his "Antiquities of 
Wisconsin," and Messrs. Squier and Davis, in the 
"Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Yalley," 
were similarly unable to complete the catalogue. 

A great mound on State street was used grading 
the hollows in that locality. Near Lake Monona, ad- 
joining Ex-Governor Fairchild's residence, was a liz- 
14 



210 HISTOKY OF MADISON. 

ard 318 feet long. The figure was rude, but not more 
so than was inevitable, considering that the mound 
was formed of surface soil, nobody knows how many 
centuries ago. It was removed in grading Wilson 
street and Wisconsin avenue. The mounds near the 
Hospital for the Insane are too well known to require 
description, and moreover, too numerous. I^orth of 
Lake Wingra there were many mounds, embodying 
specimens of almost every variety, except works for 
defense. Five of them were oblong, twenty seven 
circular, one circular with lateral projections, one a 
bird, and two quadrupeds. Every writer on this sub- 
ject is indebted to the surveys made by Dr. Lapham, 
whose work adorns the shelves of the Historical 
Society, with those of other authors who have made 
mounds their specialty. The south angle of Third 
Lake has extensive and regular works, in rows paral- 
lel with the ridges, occupying ground that slopes 
from the lake, like the seats in an amphitheatre. 
Back of these mounds is another, uniting the forms 
of a bird and a cross. At the foot is a sandy ridge 
having twenty- four elevations, on some of which ad- 
ditional eminences appear, representing animals. The 
twenty-four elevations may have been accidental, but 
they do not bear that appearance. The animal- shaped 
mounds upon them are clearly artificial. Dr. Lap- 
ham noticed a modern grave on one of the eminences, 
and on another the poles of an Indian wigwam, but 
no Indian can give an idea as to the origin of the 
mounds. The third volume of Bancroft's " United 



MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, CAYES, ETC. 211 

States " contains a suggestion from Prof. Hitchcock 
that accident and natural action would account for 
many supposed antique works. There are earthworks 
that will not admit of any such explanation, and numer- 
ous circumstances connected with the majority are con- 
clusive as to human ingenuity aiding their construc- 
tion. Probably some of the twenty-four mounds 
were natural elevations, others having been added. 
All of them were covered with soil, and forest trees 
were growing on some of them when Dr. Lapham 
wrote. A ridge of land near the margin of a lake 
might be ascribed to the frosts of succeeding 
winters, but no such action could produce a series of 
mounds. The First, Second and Fourth Lakes have 
eminences that will repay inspection. 

The world-famous " ancient city of Aztalan " de- 
mands greater space for description than can be afford- 
ed. The visitor cannot do better than spend a portion 
of his time in the rooms of our Historical Society, con- 
sulting the volumes mentioned and others yet to be 
specified, after which he will undertake inspection more 
intelligently, with much increased pleasure. Nothing 
short of actual examination can give an adequate idea 
of those earth-works. • Between Williams' Bay, on 
Lake Geneva, and the head of Duck Lake, overlook- 
ing both waters, is a mound representing a bow and 
arrow, aimed at Lake Geneva. The span of the bow 
is fifty feet, the work, finely outlined, is in proportion. 
Lake Kpshkonong skirts Dane coimty, miscalled 
Dade, in the " Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi 



212 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

Yalley," and tlie monnds in that locality have been 
visited by President W. C. "Whitford, of Milton Col- 
lege, and Mr. W. P. Clarke. The party cut through 
some mounds, and were repaid by relics of great ar- 
chiac value. A skull of excellent type was removed 
by them, and many fragments of pottery similar to the 
deb7'is in the remains of the Pueblo Indians, besides 
tools, ornaments and weapons, which will reward a 
visit to the college. Some of the mounds have been 
used for sacrificial purposes, and others for burial, 
but whether originally constructed for those purposes 
must be matter of conjecture. Residence, fortifica- 
tion, burial and worship have been served by the 
mounds in varying proportions. 

Assume a common origin for Mound builders, 
Aztecs and Toltecs, an affiliation which becomes easy 
now that the mounds have been traced to Mexico, and 
we can comprehend the purposes for which many of 
those elevations were prepared. In Mexico, and along 
the line by which the Mississippi valley mound builders 
must have migrated if they reached or departed from 
the magnificent cities of Palenque and Uxmal, there 
are wrecks of dwellings in advanced stages of decay, 
which illustrate the service rendered by the founda- 
tion mound. The earthworks were floors on which 
were erected the pueblos, supposed by the Spaniards 
to be palaces of nobles, attended on by armies of de- 
pendents; but in reality, common abodes, in which 
whole cities, towns or villages found lodgment, pur- 
suing customary avocations, living together in com- 




KMBViS. /^WfeS ftiUCB ®a^@iLiT§. 



214 HISTORY OF MADISON". 

mniiistic equality. Some of tliose buildings would 
accommodate five hundred, in others five thousand 
could find room. The mound, sometimes faced and 
covered with stone, was itself a fortification, difiicult 
of access, unless the visitor was aided from within. 
The platform being reached, the assailant, supposing 
war to be his object, found himself confronted on 
three sides bj bnildings, each story receding from the 
building line beneath, so that a stage remained avail- 
able for defense. The edifice could not be battered 
down, the enemy possessed no artillery ; could not be 
set on fire, it was faced, and to a great extent con- 
structed with stone; could not be stormed, there 
were no doorways and stairs, the upper fioors being 
reached by ladders and window entrances, which could 
be made unapproachable. Within that fortification 
the Pueblo Indians found safety against aboriginal 
war; and from windows and stages, as well as from 
occasional apertures for defense, missiles could be pro- 
pelled with deadly efiect. We find the floors of such 
buildings scattered through the valley of the Missis- 
sippi, but the vast deltas not being prodigal of stone, 
wooden buildings or mud walls were substituted. 
These materials decaying, the mounds alone remain. 
The Natchez Indians lived in houses of wood erected 
on mounds, which may have been their own handi- 
work, or that of long forgotten predecessors, when 
Tonti and La Salle observed their worshij) of the sun, 
and other indications of Mexican fellowship. The long 
house of the Iroquois, in which the tribe lived in com- 



MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, CAVES, ETC. 215 

men, with a fireplace for each family, shows that 
there may have been a time w^hen nearly all were one 
brotherhood, acquiring customs since modified by cir- 
cumstances, never wholly changed. The TeoealUs or 
Temple mounds, of which there are many examples, 
had also crowning edifices. Features of resemblance 
remain where compatible with the partial use of per- 
ishing materials. The truncated pyramids approached 
by graded ways, and the final stages upon which sac- 
rifices were offered, continue, because their constitu- 
ents are little subject to decay. Professor C. G. 
Forshey followed those works with minute annotation 
through the Mississippi valley, and the reader can 
find the results in "Foster's Pre-Historic Paces." 
Many of the mounds support trees estimated at from 
four hundred to a thousand years old. Capt. Jona- 
than Carver was first to invite attention to the mounds 
in the great valley, having examined works of defense 
near Mount Trempealeau. He also discovered the 
cave of Wakan Tebee, since destroyed by railroads, 
which had hieroglyphs or pictographs on its Avails. 
Much that pertains to this subject is omitted. Our 
book can be little other than a fingerpost, pointing to 
localities and monuments that will not permit of 
enumeration. The undeciphered hieroglyphs on 
Gales Bluff's, near La Crosse, are monuments that 
will not serve their purpose until the signs have de- 
livered up their meaning. Sun dried bricks, bearing 
impressions of the hands of workmen; clay that 
served as a casing for a great man defunct, bearing 



216 



HISTORY OF MADISON. 



similar impressions of hands that shaped it over the 
corpse, preparatory to the burning which gave the 
consistency of brick; the burnt clay that is found 
mixed with charred straw, in the works at Aztalan; 
the ornaments of copper, silver, obsidian, porphyry 
and green stone, the tools and weapons by which men 
sustained themselves and little ones, are of the high- 
est interest. The telescopic tube of stone, with which 
the mound builders examined the heavenly bodies, as 





P©RPMYiY, 



6RilNST©5ti, 



appears on a Peruvian relic, showing a figure carvea 
on silver, bespeaks high civilization. The stone bat- 
tle axes found at Kenosha; stone hatchets from Cot- 
tage Grove, from Green Bay, and from our immedi- 
ate surroundings, are replete with human interest, be- 
cause full of mystery from an age unkno\\Ti. Some 
day we may master the problem which, spliynx like, 
demands solution, as to the tumuli systematically 
raised, enclosed in mathematical figures and lines of 



MOUXDS, [MONUMENTS, CATES, ETC. 217 

circumvallatioii, builded by men who were conversant 
with mining operations, who could procure their own 
copper from the matrix, as well as shape it into artis- 
tic forms ; who wove cloth probably when the lake 
villages of S\vitzerland were first settled; who could 
prepare designs in stone and clay, expressing thoughts 
that approach the sublime, and evince a comprehen- 
sion of the beautiful ; yet have fallen below the realm 
of history, leaving to generations now remotely fol- 
lowing them, the task to discover ''Whence came 
they \ " " Whither did they go \ " 




R. [ f( K t N G e y p . 

By the kindness of S. C. Griggs & Co., the well 
known publishers, we present engravings of earth- 
works and other relics of the Mound Builders from 
"Foster's Pre-Ristoric Eaces," a book which should 
be in the hands of every thoughtful reader. The 
Mound Builders could not be omitted fi'om our rec- 
ord, but a complete statement within our limits is im- 



218 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

possible, and it affords us pleasure to refer tlie stu- 
dent to the fascinating j)ages of Foster. The works 
at Marietta were examined by Lyell in 1842. On 
that sj)ot Dr. Hildreth saw a tree which showed eight 
hundred rings of annual growth. Prior to that time 
President Harrison had written a memoir, which 
went to show,, that thousands of years must have 
elapsed from the first formation of the mound before 
such growths were possible. Every circumstance con- 
nected with the mounds points to a remote antiquity. 
Illustrations of utensils, weapons, tools and orna- 
ments, might have been indefinitely extended, but 
enough has been given to suggest the degrees of civ- 
ilization attained by the builders and occupants of the 
mounds in the Mississippi valley. The times in 
which they fiourished cannot be safely computed, but 
Dr. Dowler found a skeleton at 'New Orleans, for 
which he claims an antiquity of fifty thousand years; 
and Agassiz gives an estimate of ten thousand years, 
at the least, as the age of human remains in Florida. 
The wondrous transmutations witnessed by this con- 
tinent cannot be better illustrated than by the fact 
that the fossils of our rocks alone, reveal the form of 
the ancestors of the horse and ass; although there 
were no horses on this continent when the Spaniards 
landed in South America, save those which were 
brought by the invading soldiery. 

Enough as to our predecessors, although enough 
has never yet been said. We turn to other features 
of interest. Eleven miles a little to the south of 



MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, CAVES, ETC. 219 

west of Madison, in the ridge dividing the vallev of 
Sugar river from the lake country, is a wonderful 
cave, which unlike the "cave of the Great Spirit," 
discovered by Captain Carver, has not been destroyed 




by railroads. The basin of a lake covering an area 
of four thousand acres, discharged its volume ages 
since into the bluff by which it was bounded, and lias 
worn the channel into a series of chambers and pas- 
sages, which have been penetrated two thousand feet 



220 HISTORY OF MADISON. 

by explorers, who do not know the extent of the cav- 
ern. There is no lake to fill the basin, nor has it 
been ascertained where the waters found egress 
below. The Four Lakes are five hundred feet be- 
neath the level of the basin, and Sugar river flows at 
a distance of about a mile and a half; but nothing 
indicates that the riparian current is augmented from 
the old lake level. Explorers, with proper appli- 
ances, will find within the cavern a field for romantic 
adventure and curious observation. The grotto opens 
in the upper magnesian limestone, beneath which a 
stratum of sandstone has been reached, and the action 
of the water cannot have failed to shape vast halls, 
which imagination may people with gnomes, fairies 
and dwarfs, sufiicient for unnumbered nursery sto- 
ries. The entrance is obstructed by debris^ but four 
narrow passages remain; within, is a succession of 
chambers, ornamented by stalactite and stalagmite, 
that glisten in fantastic shapes when torches are in- 
troduced. Voices of visitors can be heard distinctly 
on the ground overhead, the roof is in some parts 
much attenuated. After a storm, when the waters 
have been dammed back from underground fissures, 
the air escaping, roars like a steam whistle. It is 
probable that fossil remains may be found in the 
many storied cavern, sufiicient to fill our museums. 

Two hours ride from this city conveys the tourist 
from this placid beauty, to the blufi*s of Baraboo and 
the wild aspects of Devil's Lake; which none fail to 
admire. Few localities offer so many charms within 



MOUNDS, MONUMENTS, CAVES, ETC. 221 

a space so easily traveled. The Four Lakes are of 
course unrivalled; the mounds tell of hoar antiquity, 
when antediluvians may have jDcopled the country; 
the cavern suggests fossil treasures never rendered to 
the eye of man; and the Devil's Lake, even Lucifer 
must look upon with delight. 



